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UPEC- Ecole Internationale d'Etudes Politiques - Fontainebleau
9 février 2024

ISLOMANIA

 

 

 

ISLOMANIA (nesophilie)

 

 

According to the UNO, there are 460 000 recorded islands. An island is a piece of land surrounded by water. Its surface must equal or be superior to 1 km2 with at least 50 permanent inhabitants. 

 

Islomania is a specific obsessional enthusiasm for islands and archipelagos. The word was coined by Lawrence Durell in Refections on a Marine Venus : A companion to the landscape of Rhodes in 1953. He wrote : « I once found a list of diseases as yet unclassified by medical science, and among these there occurred the word Islomania, which was described as « a rare but by no means unknown affliction of spirit. There are people… who find islands somehow irresistible. The mere knowledge that they are on an island, a little world surrounded by the sea, fills them with an indescribable intoxication... »

Islands are biodiversity hotspots and sea level indicators ; nodes in global trade ; they also have growing strategic significance and can even be game changers.

 

We are now in ‘the age of artificial islands’.

 

We are building more islands than ever before.

Hundreds of years ago, the Lau people of the Solomon Islands built around 80 artificial islands in a lagoon, placing bits of coral and rock into the water, piece by piece. It took them centuries.

There are several reasons for the construction of new islands which include : residential, industrial , commercial… to strategic purposes ;

Throughout history, humans have sought to create dry land within lakes, rivers and oceans, which they could then populate. But the 21st Century has brought a new ambition – and perhaps a touch of hubris – to this endeavor.

We are living in an "age of islands", according to the social geographer Alastair Bonnett of Newcastle University, UK. "New islands are being built in numbers and on a scale never seen before."

This new generation of islands are bolder, grander – and potentially more damaging...

Whether you approve of them or not, they will tell future generations a story of how humanity saw itself in the early Anthropocene.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PRESENTATIONS BY THE STUDENTS

 

To be lectured according to the schedule attached :

 

- Ireland : A Divided Island, or not ? - FANTINE and LUCIE

 

- Diego Garcia and the Chagos archipelago   The American Hard Power in the Indian Ocean

 

- Cayman islands : An Attractive Tax Haven

 

- Dubai : A Global Artificial Paradise - DORIAN and ADELE

 

- Lampedusa : A European Gateway? - FATUMATA and SASHA

 

- Iceland  A social Model - LORA and EMILY

 

- Malta : A Maritime Hub in the Mediterranean Sea - TEONA and KALYPSO

 

- Bali : a global touristic destination - SACHA and LOUISON

 

- Kingdom of Tonga : A Forever Commonwealth Country

 

- The Kuril islands : A Bone of Contention Between Russia and Japan - LAURIANNE and VINCENT

 

- The Maldives : a Paradise in disgrace ? - SYRINE and ROMY

 

 

 

 

 

Instructions : You will present ‘your’ island(s) according to this specific frame : 

 

1.  ntroduction : Location

2. Short historical background that gives clues to the contemporary situation.

3. Assets (human, economic, political…)

4. Drawbacks that explain the uneven development.

5. Geo-strategical interest.

6. What’s Up? The latest news of ‘your’ island(s)

7. Conclusion : What did you learn from that presentation?

 

Each part will be illustrated by a single picture that you will comment.

Each presentation should last 10 - 15 mn.

 

 

 

 

 

Reading List :

 

- REDON Marie : Géopolitiques des îles, 2019, Le Cavalier Bleu

 

- BONNETT Alastair : Elsewhere : A journey into our age of islands, 2021, University of Chicago Press

 

- SCHOFIELD Richard : The Geopolitics of Islands : Sovereignty, Disputes and Resource Rivalry, 2019, I.B. Tauris

 

- BOUCHARD Christian, OSMAN Shafick, Indian Ocean Islands. Illustrated Cases on Geopolitics, Ocean and Environment, 2018, Routledge

 

- « Blow Up ». Podcast Arte. L’île au cinéma.

 

 

SCHEDULE : Classroom IX

 

8, February : Presentation – Sri Lanka (part 1)

 

15, February  : Canceled

 

22, February  : Sri Lanka (part 2) – Role Play

 

29, February : The Falklands 

 

7, March :  Barbados - debate

 

14, March : The Tuvalu islands - 

 

21, March : 4 presentations : Ireland ; Dubai ; Lampedusa ; Iceland -  Mayotte - 

 

28 March : 3 presentations : Malta ; Bali ; The Kuril Islands  

Pair Work Activity : Comment Upon a Text.

 

4, April : 4 presentations : The Maldives  - The Spratleys

 

11, April : Haiti

 

18, April : Written Exam

 

E-mail :  eiepfontainebleau@yahoo.com

 

Blog :  upeceiep.canalblog.com

 

 

 

Colombo Port City: A new Dubai or a Chinese enclave?

By Anbarasan Ethirajan BBC News, Colombo Published on 17 January 2023

images

 

"An economic game changer" is how officials describe Colombo Port City, a shiny metropolis soaring out of the water along the Sri Lankan capital's seafront.

Next to Colombo's leafy business district, the huge expanse of sand reclaimed from the sea is being transformed into a high-tech city which will host an offshore international financial centre, residential areas and a marina - prompting comparisons with Dubai, Monaco or Hong Kong.

"This reclaimed land gives Sri Lanka a chance to redraw the map and to build a city of world class proportions and functionality - and compete with Dubai or Singapore," Saliya Wickramasuriya, a member of the Colombo Port City Economic Commission, told the BBC.

 

But critics question how much of an economic game changer it will really be for Sri Lanka.

For a start, in order to reclaim the 665 acres (2.6 sq km) of new land, the country needed the China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) to invest $1.4bn. In return, the firm has been given 43% of it on a 99-year lease.

 

After several years of dredging, construction activity is gaining momentum and the new city is taking shape.

 

Huge cranes supervised by Chinese engineers are moving concrete slabs, while earth movers fill trucks with tonnes of sand. A river passing through the reclaimed land has already been dredged, allowing access for small boats and yachts.

Officials estimate it will take about 25 years to complete the project, the first of its kind in South Asia.

Sri Lanka says the land under its control and the area given to the Chinese will be leased to multinational firms, banks and other companies. The government may also charge a levy on their revenue.

About 80,000 people are expected to live in the new city, which will offer tax holidays for those who invest and do business there. All transactions in the special economic zone, including salaries, will be in US dollars.

The Port City project was officially unveiled during Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Colombo in 2014, a year after he launched his Belt and Road Initiative - an ambitious plan to build road, rail and maritime infrastructure links across Asia and Europe to boost trade.

Sri Lanka turned to China for financial help to rebuild after a long war with Tamil separatists ended in 2009. Western nations had raised concerns over human rights abuses.

 

At the time of the Xi Jinping visit, Mahinda Rajapaksa was Sri Lanka's president but he lost elections later that year, with concern over Chinese loans - in particular for a vast port in the south at Hambantota - one of the issues on voters' minds.

Eight years later, and Mr Rajapaksa is now back in power, as prime minister, with his younger brother Gotabaya as president.

But Hambantota port is no longer in Sri Lanka's hand. Under the last government in 2017, Sri Lanka handed it over to Chinese control after struggling to pay off the debt to Chinese firms, with some of the money earned reportedly being used to pay off other debts.

So perhaps it is not surprising that not everyone in Sri Lanka shares the enthusiasm Port City officials have for the project.

Concerns over the scheme are numerous, and include the environmental impact of a project of this size.

Others fear the benefits of such a development will not benefit the country as much as supporters suggest it will.

 

"One potential negative around the Port City is the fact there are very significant tax holidays that are built into its law. There's a possibility of up to 40 years' worth of tax holidays for some investors," Deshal de Mel, an economist with Verite' Research, said.

"Having this large tax concession does not enhance Sri Lanka's overall revenue proposition."

 

The tax regime has triggered other worries. The US has warned that the relaxed business environment could become a haven for money launderers.

Mohamed Ali Sabry, Sri Lanka's justice minister, disagrees.

"There's no way that can happen because the normal criminal law applies here. We have our money laundering act and we have our financial intelligence unit. So, with all those things there is no way that somebody can get out of it," he told the BBC.

With China increasingly assertive on the global stage, there are also concerns over its long-term strategic ambitions.

The growing Chinese footprint in Sri Lanka is a worry for India in what has traditionally been seen as its back yard.

The Port City aims to lure away multinational firms and investors already based in India, which could dent investments and job opportunities there.

 

But some say Sri Lanka has much to fear from Colombo Port City.

In 2020, Laos, avoided bankruptcy only by selling part of its energy grid to China, to help fund a railway linking the two countries.

As with Hambantota, could Colombo Port City end up becoming a Chinese outpost in the long run?

"At the moment the way this government has agreed to the Chinese, China has taken over as much as everything in the Port City, the whole thing," opposition MP Rajitha Senaratne told the BBC.

"One day, actually Sri Lanka won't have any say in this project."

Chinese academic Zhou Bo disagrees, saying the aim is for both countries to benefit.

"China's Belt and Road Initiative is not a charity. We also want to be mutually beneficial. That means we also want our investments to have economic returns," Mr Zhou, a former People's Liberation Army senior colonel who's now with Tsinghua University in Beijing, told the BBC.

"China has no intention to trap any country into debt."

Sri Lankan officials take the same line.

"The entire area is under Sri Lankan sovereign control. The right to patrol, police, immigration and other national security duties lie with the Sri Lankan government," said Saliya Wickramasuriya, of the Port City Economic Commission.

 

But Sri Lanka, currently going through an unprecedented economic crisis has limited options.

The Covid pandemic has devastated its lucrative tourism sector and dented overseas employment, sending foreign exchange reserves plummeting.

The country's external debts have surged to more than $45bn and it owes around $8bn to China alone.

Amid appeals for financial help, Sri Lanka last week asked visiting Chinese foreign minister, Wang Yi to restructure its debt repayment to Beijing.

But with repeated downgrades by international ratings agencies, Colombo's chances of going to international investors for further loans appear slim.

Only China has long-term ambitions - and deep pockets.

But there could be strings attached - some believe a city like Hong Kong in Sri Lanka would help China tighten its grip in this part of Asia in the years ahead.

To be performed on 22, February 

 

Role Play :

5 characters are in Colombo to help the government of Sri Lanka to tackle the crisis.

1. The PM : Dinesh Gunawardena

2. The Chinese foreign affairs secretary : Wang Yi

3. India’s external affairs minister : Dr. S. Jaishankar

4. Ursula von der Leyen for the UE

5. kristalina Georgieva for the IMF 

 

 

OR 

 

 

Role Play : 

You are a Sri Lankan real estate agent and you want to sell a $1million penthouse flat to some investors.

The 3 Characters are : 

- A young real estate agent

- An American couple with an enthusiastic husband and an unhappy wife

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

QUESTIONS :

 

1. Introduce the source.

2. Describe the urban planning.

3. Why has Sri Lanka’s government decided to set up such a plan ?

4. What are the concerns with China about ?

5. What are the environmental issues related to Colombo Port City ?

6. Answer le contention : Is Port Colombo City to be a New Dubai or a Chinese enclave ?  

 

1. It is an article from BBC News by A. Ethiranjan published in January 2023. It deals with the new infrastructures of Colombo Port City in Sri Lanka which is described as « a game changer ». The government sees that project as a shift into a more dynamic economic development and hope the metropolis will compete with Dubai and Singapore in the future. The journalist fears China will take control over the Port.

 

2 The urban planning is aiming at :

- creating a global metropolis with a CBD, an international port… These infrasctructures could turn Colombo into a financial and economic hub.

- The city will be divided in 5 different districts with specific goals such as : recreation, residential, business…

- an economic boost : It could attract FDI thanks to its Special Economic Zone. Meaning that in Port Colombo business and trade laws would be different. Incentives would be implemented by the government such as « tax holidays » (companies are granted a period of lower taxation) and less restrictive regulations on quotas, customs or  labour. Their aims include increasing trade balance, employment, increased investments, job opportunities, effective administration.

- magnet for tourism thanks to new infrastructures : hotels, marina…

 

3. There are many motives :

- historical background : « Tamil separatists war that ended in 2009 » had a huge impact on the image of the island. Sri Lanka civil war started in1983. It was an intermittent insurgency against the government because they were already persecuted. The Tamils are a muslim ethnic group that wanted to create a Tamil state in the North East of the island. The Sinhalese Buddhist government defeated the Tamils at the end of a 26-year war in 2009. Up to 100,000 were killed. And many testimonies denounced ethnic genocide. The total economic cost of the war is estimated at $200 million (5 times the GDP of Sri Lanka). Sri Lanka is e LEDC’s. Its IDH is 0,780. It ranks 75th.

- Political situation : The Rajapaksas are a clan that controls the political life of the island. They are Sinhalese Buddhist nationalists. Corruption and nepotism are part of the political regime.

- Geographical assets : Sri Lanka is located on one of the busiest sea route from the Middle East to Asia. It has been a place of interest for Xi Jinping and his Belt and Road Initiative since 2014. It appears as a bead in China’s Indian Ocean necklace.

 

4. The concerns with China are :

- China (thanks to CHEC) appears as an investor and an engineer. it managed to reclaim the land that was needed to create the city port.

- But as the project goes on, Sri Lanka is getting more in debt and of course, everyone knows that if it cannot pay back, the infrastructures will be seized by China.  That procedure is nicknamed the « debt diplomacy ».

- Moreover, there are more tensions with India who sees Sri Lanka as an economic competitor driving away investments. And India thinks that China could gather intelligence as well.

 

5. The environmental issues are :

- impacts on wild life (habitat)

- marine water pollution

- waste-dumping

- port-dredging

- sand mining

- discharge of ballaste water from cargoes

- soil pollution

- acid rains

- bad air quality 

- noise nuisances

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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