China’s border restrictions put pressure on groups opposed to Myanmar’s junta

China has tightened controls on the movement of consumer goods and medicine across its border with Myanmar, putting pressure on anti-regime groups and people living in areas under their control. While some border crossings continue to see a trickle of trade, those in the Kokang Self-administered Zone (SAZ), controlled since early this year by the Myanmar Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), are completely closed, according to local merchants. “We can’t import anything because they’ve shut the border gates. There is still some trade through Muse, Namkham, and Hsenwi, but it’s very limited. It’s a real nightmare for us,” said a merchant in Chin Shwe Haw, a border town in the Kokang SAZ. Muse, a key trade hub, is one of the few border towns still under regime control since the MNDAA and its allies launched their Operation 1027 offensive late last year. Namkham and Hsenwi are controlled the Ta’ang National Liberation Army and the MNDAA, respectively. China stopped allowing pharmaceutical supplies and other goods to enter Laukkai, the administrative centre of the Kokang SAZ, in early July, after the MNDAA began its attacks on Lashio, northern Shan State’s largest city and the location of the headquarters of the junta’s Northeastern Regional Military Command. This second wave of Operation 1027, which culminated in the capture of Lashio in early August, came after the collapse of a ceasefire deal brokered by China in January. Chinese authorities have since tried to exert pressure to end the conflict. For the MNDAA, that means no more goods flowing through the most important urban area under its control. “We can still get some rice at the Chin Shwe Haw border crossing, but nothing is coming in through Laukkai. And only Chinese nationals are allowed to enter or exit through the border crossings,” a Laukkai resident said. Meanwhile, the regime has also made it more difficult for supplies to reach areas no longer under its control, imposing strict searches on vehicles travelling from Mandalay to the garrison town of Pyin Oo Lwin, a gateway to territories held by its opponents. In response, the MNDAA has urged Laukkai residents to stockpile enough food and other necessities to last them for the next six months. Residents of the city also face other difficulties. While electricity has been restored, internet and mobile phone services are still unavailable due to junta airstrikes in July and August. A sharp decline in the value of the kyat has also added to the hardships of local people, forcing many to switch to the Chinese yuan to purchase the limited amount of goods still entering the country from China. According to a woman from Kutkai, a town on the major trade route between Muse and Lashio, much of what has been reaching the market has come from areas under the control of the United Wa State Army and the National Democratic Alliance Army—ethnic armed groups not directly involved in Operation 1027. Northern Shan State is not the only area affected by China’s border restrictions. Laiza, a town in Kachin State bordering China’s Yunnan Province, and home to the headquarters of Kachin Independence Army (KIA), has also been suffering from shortages and high prices. “Prices started getting much higher in July, especially food prices. It’s also difficult to find fuel,” said a woman displaced by fighting in the area. Kachin State has large numbers of internally displaced persons due to a conflict between the KIA and the Myanmar military that began in 2011. The KIA has also intensified its offensives against the regime since late last year. “Displaced people, both those sheltering in the forest and those in camps, are suffering from serious food and medicine shortages,” said Jacob, a representative of Kachin Human Rights Watch.

China’s border restrictions put pressure on groups opposed to Myanmar’s junta

Locals living in areas under the control of anti-regime forces report growing hardships as a result of limits on border trade

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