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The Face of the Mekong Upstream
Photo Essay by XU JINYAN
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A scene from Chengdu. |
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Since going on this assignment, I have become more interested in the Mekong river and region than ever before. Furthermore, after having travelled to downstream countries, I became even more drawn to learning and sharing pictures about the lives of the people and the natural environment upstream of the Mekong, called the Lancang river or the part of the Mekong inside China.
On Oct. 7, 2004, some documentary filmmakers and I, aboard a sturdy Toyota 4500 jeep, started the journey from Kunming, capital of China's south-west Yunnan province. After two days of travel, we entered the Lancang watershed, and arrived at Meli Snow Mountain. At 6,740 metres above sea level, it is the highest mountain peak in Yunnan province — and throughout the Mekong region. This scenic snow mountain is also one of the four most holy mountains in Tibet's religion. We stayed at the foot of the snow mountain for four days, interviewing several local families. more
CAMBODIA-THAILAND
Opportunity Can Turn Into Hell
by
SOY SOPHEA
POIPET, Cambodia — Instead of going to school everyday, 16-year-old Khon Nor and her four siblings crossed the nearby border into Thailand daily to toil in sugarcane farms in Aranyaprathet district in Sakeo province.
They earned 50 baht (1.25 U.S. dollars) a day, but this was never sufficient for the needs of the family that has a drunken stepfather. It was not long before Nor decided it was time to go into Thailand — and stay there.
After all, she had always thought of Thailand as heaven for people like her. Every morning at seven, the border checkpoint to Thailand opens after the Cambodian national anthem fades away, and thousands of Cambodians make their way across to what many think would be the land of milk and honey. more
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Documentaries
- LAOS
Kop
Pha Beuang Nan (Their Corner of the Sky)
produced by Vannaphone Sitthirath,
Lao National TV
Phiphat Phamouang, Lao Youth Media Board
Sancha Hansana, National Film Archive and Video Center
- CAMBODIA
Komar
Neng Kar Rokcy Chlong Den (Children at the Crossing)
produced by Lach Chan Tha, Producer,
Phnom Penh City TV3
Chin Lyhorn, National Television of Cambodia
Luy Savuth, Apsara Media Group
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Best
viewed at 800 x 600 dpi with 
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Mekong Leaders Set up Biodiversity
Corridors Pushed by China
by Antoaneta Bezlova
KUNMING (IPS) — Deflecting criticism that economic integration
in the Mekong region is being pursued at the expense of the
environment, ecosystems and local livelihoods, leaders of the
six Mekong countries endorsed Tuesday the creation of Asia's
first set of biodiversity corridors for wild species movement
and preservation. more
On Eve of Mekong Summit, Gov't,
Activists Far Apart
Analysis by Johanna Son
UBON RATCHATHANI (IPS) — When leaders of the six countries in
the Mekong region meet in China Monday, they will be out of
the earshot of non-government groups and academics who say its
development is rushing down a path that puts the environment,
local livelihoods and cultures at risk. more
BURMA
After Poppy Ban, Wa Face Tough
Times Ahead
by Larry Jagan
BANGKOK (IPS) — Burma's notorious drug barons, former rebels
from the ethnic Wa group, have announced an end to poppy cultivation
in the areas they control, but United Nations officials say
it is only a first step to rehabilitating Wa villagers. more
BURMA
A Nightmare for Minorities, says
Human Rights Watch
by Marwaan Macan-Markar
BANGKOK (IPS) — After enduring long food shortages and being
a victim of forced labour, a 30-year-old woman from Burma's
Karen ethnic community fled her village for the nearby Thai-Burmese
border late last year. more
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News and issues as reported
by media from the region |
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