Deep water

摘要

FOR generations, Priyantha Ananda's family sold kalu dodol—a sticky sweet made of coconut milk and rice flour-on the old Tangalle road in Hambantota. The government moved his wayside shop in 2008 to build a sprawling commercial port, financed by Chinese loans. He was one of around 40 street vendors forced to relocate to another neighbourhood, far from their homes, where business is slow. Most distressing of all, the authorities have told them not to erect any permanent buildings. That suggests they might be displaced again, this time for an industrial zone being developed by Chinese investors.