I read “The Shore Beyond Good and Evil: A Report from Inside Burma’s Opium Kingdom” (original title: “アヘン王国潜入記”) in Japanese. It’s a valuable piece of reportage documenting the author’s time living in a small village in Wa State, northern Myanmar. The book details his experiences cultivating poppies and his own struggles with opium addiction.
It’s remarkable that the author was able to gain access to this village – a feat that must have required extensive connections and unwavering determination. Contrary to what one might expect, the villagers are not depicted as criminals or outcasts but as ordinary people simply trying to survive.
The author’s observations of daily life in the village are fascinating. I gained a deeper understanding of poppy cultivation and the unique culture and circumstances of the people in Wa State. It becomes clear that, for these villagers, cultivating poppies isn’t a choice but a necessity.
The book has also prompted me to pay closer attention to current events in Myanmar, a country I had previously overlooked in the news.
