FEATURE: Business booms again in bustling Boten
LUANG NAMTHA, Laos (Vientiane Times/ANN) – Just 10 years ago, the border town of Boten in Luang Namtha province was a bustling town of neon lights, cashed up tourists and thriving businesses that centered on a casino and gambling dens that drew thousands of Chinese nationals across Laos’ northern border every month.
When the casino closed in 2012, the tourists stopped coming and most businesses in the town were forced to close permanently. The population dropped dramatically as a result and, by the time I went there just a couple of years ago, Boten looked all but a shell of what it once was. Most shops in the central business district had nothing but weeds, peeling paint and heavily shuttered windows on offer and what few locals remained appeared helpless in the face of the continuing decay around them.
Khonesavanh Lathsaphao
http://annx.asianews.network/content/feature-business-booms-again-bustling-boten-98047
