Just as Japan’s post-WW2 rebuild was super-powered by the outbreak of the Korean War, so too was Thailand’s society-changing tourist boom triggered by America’s war in Vietnam.
Areas, such as “Soi Cowboy”, Sukhumvit and Patpong in the Thai capital, Bangkok, became favoured destinations for U.S. troops seeking R&R from the rigours of fighting an elusive enemy in-country.
Today, the dictum, that one man’s misfortune is another man’s opportunity, could apply to the complex maneuvering over which Southeast Asian country is going to be the next big thing in the regional shift to legalised gambling and new billion dollar casino-resorts.
For much of the last 12-months Thailand has been leading the pro-gambling charge, with much-touted plans to accept de-facto reality and legalise gambling in the kingdom and open a number of luxury casino-resorts in the vacation hotspot, the seventh most visited country in the world that attracts almost 38-million tourists every year.
Puppet Master
The plan had the powerful backing of prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra and her father Thaksin Shinawatra, a former Thai PM himself and political puppet master, despite spending 15-years in exile.
But the Shinawatra double-act, and plans to legalise gambling, have now been derailed by “events, Dear Reader, events”.
Following a secret but leaked telephone call with Cambodian strongman Hun Sen, in a bid to defuse a potentially explosive border dispute between the two countries, Paetongtarn has been suspended from office – and her resolution to open five casino resorts in the nation, correspondingly, lies in ruins.
Into this breach steps regional rival Vietnam, once war-ravaged but now booming and determined to open a US$2.16 billion (£1.58bn) casino-resort in the island district of Van Don, a special administrative region in the north-east province of Quảng Ninh.
Amid stunning natural beauty, and improving transport links to the heavily-populated capital city of Hanoi, all the ingredients to establish a Vietnamese riposte to Macau are here.
Back to the Future
According to some reports, regional casino-resort heavy-hitters Las Vegas Sands and Malaysia-origin Genting Group have previously explored options in Van Don but were dissuaded by lack of infrastructure.
While Paetongtarn Shinawatra fights for her family’s political survival in Thailand and denies allegations of kow-towing to the old frenemy, Cambodia–it’s alleged she called Hun Sen “Uncle”, dissed one of her own generals and offered “to take care” of business–, Vietnam’s Ministry of Finance has submitted its plan for the US$2.16 billion Van Don resort on 250-odd hectares to operate under a 70-year licence.
The complex, to be built in three phases and completed by 2032, would be geared to attracting international visitors and would feature a casino, luxury hotels and entertainment venues.
It joins a growing list of casino-resorts around the world–in Japan, The Philippines, the U.A.E, New York City, to name a few–hoping to take us back to the future.
Watch this space.
