The new project, Shwe Kokko is directly opposite Mae sot in Thailand on the Moei river

She Zhijiang

Cambodian government documents show Zhijiang was granted citizenship by royal decree under the name Tang Kriang Kai in January 2017, less than three weeks before he registered Myanmar Yatai with Myanmar’s Directorate of Investment and Company Administration.

It’s not clear how Zhijiang obtained Cambodian citizenship, but it is possible to get it for making a donation of at least $250,000 to the government. The Chinese government does not recognise dual citizenship, but it does not necessarily mean that Zhijiang gave up his Chinese citizenship upon becoming a Cambodian national.

is also involved in the massive Long Bay project in Cambodia’s Koh Kong province, which bears striking similarities to Shwe Kokko.




The Long Bay project in Cambodia’s Koh Kong province

Although 1,000 kilometres apart, two massive development projects – one in Myanmar’s Kayin State, the other in Cambodia – bear striking similarities.

They both cover thousands of hectares and include plans to build airports, hotels and casinos. Both are located in neglected, undeveloped corners of their respective countries. Both have been accused of having links to online gambling and other illegal activities, and both have been mistaken for state-owned enterprises.

Both projects ­– Shwe Kokko in Myanmar’s Kayin State and Long Bay in Cambodia – also involve the same ethnic Chinese businessman: She Zhijiang.

Variously known as She Lunkai, Dylan She and Tang Kriang Kai – to name but a few of his pseudonyms – he is chairman of Yatai International Holding, a company registered in Hong Kong and headquartered in Bangkok that has high-profile businesses in Cambodia, Myanmar and the Philippines.

But neither Yatai nor the man behind the company are well known outside ethnic Chinese business circles in Southeast Asia. Despite the media coverage of his projects – particularly Shwe Kokko, which the company touts as a US$15 billion “new city” development but observers say appears to be a front for online gambling operations – the spotlight has mostly passed over Zhijiang.

https://www.frontiermyanmar.net/en/the- ... o-project/