Snr-Gen Than Shwe, the head of the SPDC, reportedly moved into his 4,000 square-meter residence to the east of the Rangoon-Mandalay highway in February suggesting that too is finished—workers said they are no longer permitted into the compound, which is built into a hillside, without written permission from a senior defense official. The restricted military zone, including a high school for the children of high-ranking officials, also appeared to be nearing completion.
Nevertheless, after two and a half years of construction, Naypyidaw still lacks the infrastructure required to support a community.
High-ranking officials have fared much better than the government rank-and-file, whose living accommodations consist at the moment of makeshift huts on the outskirts of the city, the son of one government employee complained. The construction of permanent housing for low-level civil servants forms part of the second phase of development and could take years to complete.
There are few places to buy anything in Naypyidaw—in fact, few places to do anything as a visitor. The only shops lie on the edge of the
One article in The New Light of Myanmar in August provided this rosy depiction of the dusty capital: “A long row of new departmental buildings…in Naypyidaw has become a majestic scene for anyone visiting the place,” the article declared. “It will not be wrong to say that service personnel have entered a new age.”
In light of other capital relocations, the limited progress in Naypyidaw after more than two years of effort is unsurprising.
« previous 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 next page »