Chinese cigarettes and Bolivian beer: the Amazonian town transformed by a rampant mining boom
Source: The Guardian ·
Mayaya, once-remote, has become a hub for Chinese companies. But critics accuse them of exploitation and illegal exportsThe pork belly hits the oil with a sizzle, and a rich aroma of soy sauce and caramelising sugar fills the kitchen. Zhang Changchun, a middle-aged man from China’s Heilongjiang province, is cooking dinner for his friends on a warm evening in Mayaya, a small town in the Bolivian…
From the source
The pork belly hits the oil with a sizzle, and a rich aroma of soy sauce and caramelising sugar fills the kitchen. Zhang Changchun, a middle-aged man from China’s Heilongjiang province, is cooking dinner for his friends on a warm evening in Mayaya, a small town in the Bolivian Amazon. “Bolivia is my happy place,” he says in Mandarin as he adds the dish to a table overflowing with pork trotters, duck wings and braised sábalo fish. In this small restaurant, a group of half a dozen Chinese men gathers most nights to eat, drink and play mahjong. Each man plays a critical role in the town’s booming gold business. Some work as investors or miners; others import supplies and equipment. Together, they run most of the town’s mining operations: about 20 open-pit mines and 12 dredge boats, operated by about 2,000 Bolivian and 200 Chinese workers. The table gets rowdy as the men debate their afternoon games over high-end Chinese cigarettes and Bolivian beer. Almost every conversation revolves…
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