ABSTRACT
Ceasefire agreements between the Myanmar government and different armed groups in 1989 created a new political map of the Myanmar borderlands. Once called black or brown regions because of their instability, border towns in the frontier areas, particularly in the Kachin and Shan States, became Special Regions. Unlike other border towns in Southeast Asia, where the state makes concession with a newly emerged global hegemon, China, old warlords in Mongla negotiate business transactions over dams, rubber plantations, and casinos with Chinese businessmen from Yunnan, Macau, or Hong Kong. And unlike other border towns where border crossing is at the discretion of an immigration officer, Mongla has no administration of border crossing and exchange of goods by any governing bodies. This situation is underpinned by a fragile relationship between the government and old warlords, a regular feature of border towns in north, north-eastern, and eastern Burma.
