The main investor in a controversial Kayin State mega project is an expatriate Chinese businessman who has a built a commercial empire in Southeast Asia by fudging connections with the Chinese state. By ANDREW NACHEMSON | FRONTIER Although 1,000 kilometres apart, two massive development projects – one in Myanmar’s Kayin State, the other in Cambodia […]
Myanmar Authorities Close Thai Border, Thousands Unable to Work at Textile Factories
Thousands of Myanmar textile workers on the Thai-Myanmar border in Three Pagodas Pass, Karen State have been unable to go to work at factories in Thailand due to a dispute between the countries’ border authorities. “For the workers, they do not have monthly salaries, so how can they survive?” asked U Tin Myo Oo, a […]
Army Shutters Myawaddy Checkpoint in Clampdown on Auto Smuggling
Two Border Guard Force (BGF) soldiers refused The Irrawaddy permission to approach a border crossing between Myawaddy and Mae Sot, Thailand on foot on Monday, saying the area was closed. The closure reportedly followed efforts by the army to clamp down on vehicle smuggling across the Thai border. According to Kyaw Than, an automobile trader […]
Thai-Myanmar border trade resumes through Mae Sot
Myanmar soldiers reopened ports on the Moei River opposite Tak province to trade on Tuesday night after Thai authorities allowed oil exports to resume through pipelines to Myawaddy. Myanmar soldiers had closed 23 ports on the river bank on Tuesday morning. This followed Thai officials’ recent decision to ban fuel deliveries through pipelines. They said […]