Communication | The lens and pen of the recorder bear witness to the three-year transformation of the China-Laos Railway
Xinhua News Agency, Vientiane, December 5th, Newsletter | The lens and pen of the recorder bear witness to the changes of the China-Laos Railway in three years
Xinhua News Agency reporters Ma Huaizhao and Zhao Xu
"Since its opening at the end of 2021, the Laos-China railway has promoted the development of trade and tourism in Laos, and significantly improved the lives of local people in Laos," Sen Thong, director of the English editorial department of the Lao Pat Lao News Agency, said in an article published on the website of the Pat Lao News Agency recently.
Since the opening of the China-Laos Railway three years ago, the documenters have used cameras and pens to spread the story of the China-Laos Railway benefiting the local people and witnessed the development and changes of the China-Laos Railway.
On April 12, 2024, at the Luang Prabang Station of the China-Laos Railway in Laos, passengers prepare to check in and board the train. Xinhua News Agency (photo by Yang Yongquan)
Sentong has been in the news industry for more than 20 years. He has been following the progress of the China-Laos railway and has written a lot of reports. He lamented that after the railway opened, passenger and freight transportation boomed, and international passenger trains opened. Good news kept coming.
Sentong noticed that the China-Laos Railway has led to the development of economic and trade along the railway line, showing a thriving development momentum, and he was particularly impressed by the changes around the Vientiane Station. "Around the Vientiane Station of the old China Railway, new warehouses, courier companies and commercial office buildings have sprung up like mushrooms after a rain," he wrote in the article.
"I am happy and proud that the Lao people have a modern railway that meets the country's transportation needs, which has injected strong impetus into the development of Laos and China and the region," he said.
On December 3, 2021, the China-Laos Railway "Lancang" EMU train left Vientiane Station in Laos. Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Kai Qiao)
Mr. Kamphong, who has worked for Vientiane Times in Laos for nearly 20 years, believes that one of the big changes brought about by the opening of the China-Laos railway is to change the face of Laos' "land-locked country". "The Laos-China railway project has taken Laos' national development to a higher level and helped Laos change from a'land-locked country 'to a'land-linked country'."
From reporting on the excavation of tunnels and other sites in the early stage of railway construction, to visiting villagers, entrepreneurs and government entities along the line, Kampong has been deeply involved in the front line for many years, vividly documenting the well-being of the Lao people brought by the China-Laos Railway.
"The biggest feeling in following up on the development of the Laos-China railway over the years is that there were doubts at the beginning about whether the railway could be built and whether Laos could benefit from it. After it was completed, people did see the benefits of the railway in many ways." One of the benefits is that transportation is more convenient. Before, it was time-consuming and expensive to travel by bus. After the railway was completed, people switched to train travel. The public was generally satisfied with the railway that provided convenient services.
Kampong observed that the opening of the railway has brought more opportunities to the local people. "More and more people are coming to Laos to invest and start businesses, and the people have more job opportunities. With the more convenient transportation of goods, the output of goods has increased compared with before, the income of ordinary people has increased, and the days have become more and more prosperous!"
Along the China-Laos railway, Chinese employee Yang Yongquan is often active. Since October 2021, he has been stationed in Laos to report on the China-Laos railway. He has traveled to various stations in the Laos section of the China-Laos railway and recorded the growth of the China-Laos railway in the past three years.
"There are more and more passengers, the railway service is getting better and better, and the smiles on the people's faces are brighter!" Yang Yongquan sighed when talking about the changes in the railway in the past three years.
What he remembers is the gradual improvement of railway services over the past three years. "At first, there was no online ticketing system on the Laos section of the China-Laos railway, and local people could only queue up at the ticket office of the station to buy tickets. After the online ticketing system was officially launched in March 2023, Lao people can buy tickets with their mobile phones, which is more convenient," he said.
Loving to take photos, he recorded the precious moments, big and small, of the China-Laos Railway. "I still remember the opening of the China-Laos Railway International Passenger Train on April 13, 2023. I was lucky enough to photograph the first international train ticket sold, and I was very excited and proud." From April 13 to 18, 2024 was the Lao New Year. A large number of Laotians took the China-Laos Railway to return home for the New Year. Yang Yongquan also recorded this scene with his camera.
"In the past three years, there have been more than 34,000 photos of the China-Laos Railway in the mobile phone alone!" Speaking of the photos he took, Yang Yongquan is like a family treasure. "I am very proud to have grown up with the China-Laos Railway and recorded the changes in the past three years with the lens."
This is the China-Laos Railway Mengsai Station photographed in northern Laos on March 11, 2022. Xinhua News Agency (photo by Kai Qiao)
On February 23, 2023, the China-Laos Railway "Lancang" EMU train is about to arrive at Vientiane Station in Laos. Xinhua News Agency (full photo by Yang Yongquan)
