A government plan to close two thriving markets in Vientiane for renovation ahead of the ASEAN Summit in the Laotian capital next year has angered vendors who say they will have nowhere to sell their wares and fear a surge on rent when they reopen.
Other stall owners told Radio Free Asia that the demolition will destroy the historical significance of the Khua Dine and Sihom Night markets and damage their tourist appeal as the two sites are a fixture on foreign visitors’ itineraries.
The developers announced that the sites would be shutting down around April 25 to make them cleaner and more convenient for both sellers and visitors. Construction is likely to take 10-12 months, the vendors said.
Authorities said the Sihom Night Market, which has about 300 stalls and is also known as Hengboun Food and Culture Street, was “crowded and disorganized,” with vendors obstructing traffic and generating large amounts of traffic. trash. In addition, it lacked bathrooms for visitors.
“We must order the city to help facilitate the same,” Nantha Sanuvong, deputy director of Vientiane Capital’s Department of Industry and Commerce, told a news conference. She said the renewal was related to the 2024 ASEAN Summit and other “important conferences starting in April.”
To spruce up the city before the summit, officials also plan to bury unsightly phone lines and crack down on noise pollution.
What to do in the meantime?
A Sihom shopkeeper said the government was quick to shut it down, giving them only a day or two notice.
“At least the government should have found a new place for us before the lockdown,” said the shopkeeper, who declined to be named for his own safety. “Now we have nowhere to sell.”
“Sihom Night Market is popular with tourists,” he added. “If the officials force us to settle elsewhere, we fear that as many tourists will not come to buy as they do here.”
At Khua Dine Market, some of the 100 or so homeowners welcomed the renovation plans. But many others said the lockdown will destroy their livelihoods and expressed frustration that no accommodations were made for their businesses.
“Traders will have to wait at least 10 months to a year for the work to finish,” said one stall owner, speaking to RFA on condition of anonymity.
During that time, “merchants will have no other location to sell their products” and will be forced to find space in other marketplaces, which would require a large initial deposit that few have access to.
And while merchants who leave their deposit with Khua Dine’s developer, Lieng Heng Enterprise Commercial Management, will have priority to set up their stalls again when the renovation is complete, those who collect their deposit will have no guarantee they can return, the stall said. the owner.
Another trader told Radio Free Asia that he is concerned that the developer of Khua Dine will increase the rent for stalls once the market reopens.
“This market is a popular landmark, everyone knows it very well,” he said. “After the renovation, it will be clean and modern, but we are afraid that they will increase the rent to a level that we cannot
to pay.”
lose the charm
Khua Dine’s renovation could make the market too sterile, others worried, saying the chaotic morning bustle of the market is part of its charm. They urged developers to refrain from demolishing older structures, which they said are part of the market’s 50-year-old historical significance.
“Lao people have important memories of (the market) as it is a place where families have bought groceries for many generations,” said a resident of the area near Khua Dine on Nongboun Road, near the Vientiane Center shopping mall.
“Also, most of the merchandise on the market is wholesale,” he added, which means shoppers will have a hard time finding affordable items elsewhere.
Others lamented the loss of income from tourists, who flock to the market to buy souvenirs and locally produced goods.
Police will patrol the area around Hengboun Road to ensure that all the stalls have been dismantled. If any vendor remains open, they will be given a written warning, and those who continue to operate after that will be fined and their goods confiscated.
Translated by Sidney Khotpanya. Edited by Josh Lipes and Malcolm Foster.
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