Chua Chin Hon - Time and Tide on Exposure

The rise of modern China is one of the biggest stories of our times. Beijing, the Chinese capital city, and financial hub Shanghai are the obvious places to observe the rise of this new superpower. I found a good alternative observation post during my six-year stint in China - the 660-km stretch of river towns and cities behind the Three Gorges Dam in central China.The major themes of the China story - unprecedented socioeconomic change, environmental crises, the thirst for energy, the destruction of historical and cultural heritage - are all here, framed against the backdrop of millions of ordinary Chinese struggling to cope with the powerful man-made and natural forces beyond their control. Would the huge sacrifices be worth it in the end, as China successfully uses the Three Gorges Dam to harness the power of the Yangtze River? Or would the dire warnings about the controversial project come true with tragic consequences? No one is quite sure.And much like the country, the complex changes in the Three Gorges region seem to defy human efforts to capture the story in full. I made six trips there between June 2003 and August 2010. Each time, I left with the distinct feeling that I’ve not even scratched the surface. It’s like trying to scale a mountain that keeps growing taller each year. I hope to return some day to resume this story. For now, this is my unfinished journal on changes behind the Three Gorges Dam.