Instead, Laos, a landlocked country with a Marxist government and a poor human-rights record, is doubling down. Laos depends heavily on international aid and foreign investment, and officials claim hydropower development will turn the country into the "battery" of Southeast Asia and spur economic growth. Last November, government officials announced plans to build a second major dam, Don Sahong, in southern Laos near the Cambodian border. This dam project