''Public opposition to the controversial Myitsone Dam project is gaining momentum ahead of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s upcoming visit to China. The State Counselor will meet President Xi Jinping when China holds the second Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) summit this month. In the latest show of popular opposition to China’s proposed dam, prominent Myanmar environmentalists, writers and civil society leaders formed a national committee to oppose the suspended project, and warned the government of more resistance if it is revived. The Myitsone project is expected to be one of the issues on the table for discussion. The Myanmar public wants her to say no to the massive hydropower plan, but so far her statements on it have been vague. But saying yes to the project would be political suicide for the government and for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi herself. In 2018, speaking at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Papua New Guinea, Xi announced that “China will work with all countries involved with the BRI according to the principle of consultation and collaboration for shared benefits”. He vowed the initiative would incorporate high standards, “so that it will deliver quality outcomes and create even greater development opportunities for the people in the Asia-Pacific and beyond.” But anti-China sentiment and demand for a critical debate on the BRI are growing in Myanmar. Chinese officials now acknowledge the China-funded Myitsone project in Kachin State is part of the BRI project, and Beijing has recently stepped up pressure on Myanmar to accept the project. The Chinese ambassador, as well as other officials and representatives of China’s State Power Investment Corporation (SPIC), have traveled to Kachin State to meet local groups in an effort to persuade them to say yes to the project. However, public emotion there is running high, and a sense of anger toward China is spreading to the rest of Myanmar...''