Boten

Boten

ບໍ່ເຕັນ
Ma đinh
Boten ບໍ່ເຕັນ; Ma đinh
	Boten
	Coordinates:21°11′03″N101°40′19″E/ 21.18413°N 101.67202°E
Country	Laos
Province	Luang Namtha
Time zone	UTC+7(ICT)
Website	www.boten

Boten(Lao:ບໍ່ເຕັນ,pronounced[bɔ̄ː.tèn];Chinese:Ma đinh) is a town inLaoslocated inLuang Namtha Province,situated on theChina–Laos borderopposite the Chinese town ofMohan.^[1]^: 129Although Boten is part of Laos, most of its inhabitants speak Mandarin Chinese as their native language. The town operates onBeijing time.^[1]^: 130

Economy

Boten allows the use of both theLao kipand theChinese yuan.^[1]^: 130

The BotenSpecial Economic Zoneis currently under development.^[1]^: 129The town is aiming to transition from its former gambling-focused economy to one centered on logistics and tourism.^[1]^: 130

Transport

After five years of construction, both theVientiane–Boten RailwayandYuxi–Mohan railwaysopened in December 2021, connecting Boten south towardsVientianeand north towardsKunming,China. Boten is the northernmost Lao town on the 414 km railway, which features 198 km of tunnels and 62 km of bridges, and operates at a speed of 160 km per hour. The town is served byBoten railway station.

Casino

The Boten casino (2013)

An abandoned street in Boten (2013)

In 2002, a big casino was built in Boten, primarily attracting Chinese visitors, asgambling is illegal in China.In 2011, the Chinese government requested that Laos close the casino.^[2]^[3]Today the casino stands abandoned.

References

The Rebirth of Casino Town Boten, Laos | Borderlands | Full Episode

Citations

^^a ^b ^c ^d ^eCurtis, Simon; Klaus, Ian (2024).The Belt and Road City: Geopolitics, Urbanization, and China's Search for a New International Order.New Haven and London:Yale University Press.doi:10.2307/jj.11589102.ISBN 9780300266900.JSTOR jj.11589102.
^Ganjanakhundee, Supalak (8 September 2013)."No more casinos in Laos: Somsavat".The Nation.Archived fromthe originalon 2014-07-14.Retrieved2014-07-10.
^"Treasures of Laos: Golden Boten City has been closed down—will it wake up again with help from China?".Treasures of Laos.7 April 2013.Retrieved2014-07-10.

[:Curtis&Klaus-1] Curtis, Simon; Klaus, Ian (2024).The Belt and Road City: Geopolitics, Urbanization, and China's Search for a New International Order.New Haven and London:Yale University Press.doi:10.2307/jj.11589102.ISBN 9780300266900.JSTOR jj.11589102.

[Nation-20130908-2] Ganjanakhundee, Supalak (8 September 2013)."No more casinos in Laos: Somsavat".The Nation.Archived fromthe originalon 2014-07-14.Retrieved2014-07-10.

[blogspot-3] "Treasures of Laos: Golden Boten City has been closed down—will it wake up again with help from China?".Treasures of Laos.7 April 2013.Retrieved2014-07-10.

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