By Han Chengyuan， Zhu Hai & Chen Baojiang

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China， Myanmar Share Friendly Border

By Han Chengyuan， Zhu Hai & Chen Baojiang

The 14th China-Myanmar Pawkphaw Carnival was held from October 1-3， 2014 in Ruili， Yunnan. A total of 50 traditional ox cart parades involving 3，780 people took part.

One day in 1956, Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai and Myanmar Prime Minister U Ba Swe planted two michelia champaca trees in the China-Myanmar border area, which marked a new chapter in bilateral friendship. Over half a century has passed. Today, the two sides are still adding new chapters to their much-told old tale.

Ruili, a Yunnan border town, abuts Mu-Se of Myanmar. Situated on the ancient Southern Silk Road, it has witnessed traveling merchants from Myanmar and other countries passing through, leaving behind them oral tales still receiving general approval.

A dozen kilometers from Ruili is small Chinese Dai ethnic village called Yinjing, which sits by the No. 71 boundary marker, one of many markers indicating the China-Myanmar border. Just across the border, meters away from Yinjing, lies a Myanmar Dai ethnic village called Mangxiu. Both villagers drink water from a well sitting close to the No. 71 marker and share the same street. They live in harmony from generation to generation. It is a unique border scene of “one village, two countries”.

Ruili is an inclusive city with more than 20,000 Myanmar people working in diferent occupations. They view Ruili as their second hometown, and they have become an inseparable part of the city.

Tang Sailong from Zhejiang Province in eastern China set up a factory processing rosewood in the Myanmar city of Mandalay in 1996. He employed many local workers and the factory developed successfully. In 2003, Tang founded Deguan Henglong Furniture Ltd. in Ruili and moved his Myanmar employees from Mandalay to the Chinese city. Of the factory's 920-plus employees, 820 arefrom Myanmar, and more than 200 of them started a family there. Some are the second generation working and living there.

In 1998 Madam, then 25, came to Ruili from Yekyauk Town of Mandalay. Now, she runs a car wash business. She has much to say about the past 17 years.“Ruili is very close to Myanmar in terms of customs and lifestyle. Ruili people are also easy to get along with. Now, I have more than 50 local friends,” she said happily. Later, she brought all her family to join her in Ruili. Apart from the car wash, she owns a household service company, which has connections with 40-odd families. Meanwhile, her son has started a jewelry business that is fourishing. Te family lives a happy life here.

Since 2000, Ruili and Mu-Se have jointly sponsored the China-Myanmar Pawkphaw Carnival, the Myanmar-China Border Trade Fair, the Water-Sprinkling Festival, the China-Ruili Jewelry Culture Festival and many other major events each year. These activities have become grand gatherings strengthening friendly exchanges, mutual trust and cooperation between the two countries.

Recent years have seen much expansion in the number of Myanmar workers in China's border cities like Ruili. They have become an important force supporting local economic development. In order to provide better services and management for these people, Ruili has worked hard to improve its service and management model. Based on the Ruili Service Center for Foreign Personnel, the local government provides an outstanding one-stop service for Myanmar people working in the city. It has also set up the Management Center for Cross-border Marriage Registration and Record, the Mediation Center for Disputes Concerning Foreign Affairs, and the Labor and Employment Service Center for Foreign Personnel to offer legal protection, and solve issues related to cross-border employment, migration and transnational marriages in the border areas.

Tis provides practical, highly efcient and convenient service, and builds a bridge of friendship for people of both sides.

Ruili has two national-level ports with strong cash flow. However, a weak system for settlement of accounts between the two countries seriously blocked development of bilateral trade. With the impetus of the Belt and Road Initiative, Ruili has deepened its comprehensive financial reform, actively promoting innovation in cross-border finance, optimizing the financial environment and providing appropriate institutional guarantees, and has thus gradually improved its level of opening up, trade and investment facilitation.

“We will continue to strengthen and improve our service level and management for foreign personnel,” said Shao Yongbao, Director of the Ruili Service Center for Foreign Personnel. He cited the example of the Ruili Complaint Station for Financial Consumption Rights of Foreign Personnel established in the frst half of 2015, which was the first of its kind in Yunnan. This is considered conducive to further opening a channel for financial consumers to complain and safeguard their legal rights. It effectively protects the legal interests of foreign personnel, so as to build a good environment for fnancial transactions in the border area.

The development of China-Myanmar friendship effectively promotes the happiness of people in the border area. It also helps when one side is in need. In mid-July 2015, parts of Myanmar sufered continuously strong rainfall which led to the worst floods in 40 years. Soon after, Hong Liang, the Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar, led Chinese embassy staff to the Sagaing Region and Rakhine State, donating relief materials and expressing sincere regards for the people of the disaster-hit area.

“As the brothers of the Myanmar people, in face of such a disaster, Chinese people are deeply afected and our hearts are torn with anxiety,” the ambassador said to Myanmar people of the disaster-stricken areas.

To help people of Myanmar to overcome the disaster as fast as possible, China provided financial aid and materials, amounting to 100 million yuan （US$15.3 million）. Yunnan borders Myanmar, so its people were naturally concerned. The provincial government offered assistance to Myanmar people many times, including two batches of relief materials in August 2015, valued at 5 million yuan（US$800,000）. Te Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture and Ruili City offered 1 million yuan （US$170,000） and 358,000 yuan （US$66,000） respectively.

Meanwhile, the Blue Sky Rescue, a Chinese rescue team, also went to Myanmar to help victims. It is a non-governmental agency providing professional emergency rescue services. Its team leader, Sun Dawei, noted they were the frst international rescue team to arrive in Myanmar. They started to work on August 2 and worked without break for more than 10 days and nights.

Te team consisted of 32 professional rescuers and several doctors and worked in the relief front line. Each of them worked over 14 hours a day, ofen walking long distances. They surveyed more than 200 villages and ofered medical treatment to many people. Their work was widely praised in Myanmar. A worker delivering relief materials said that when they hung a special banner on the side of their trucks, local people would line the roadside and applaud.

“Great Nature Is Ruthless, Human Nature Is Not； Brothers Sufer, We Help,”the banner read.

Mainstream media such as Myanmar National TV, Democracy Today and Ayeyarwady also highly appraised the rescue activities.

Sixty years later, the saplings planted by Premiers of both countries have grown into towering trees - a symbol of the enduring strength of China-Myanmar relations.