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China, Burma hold low-key golden anniversary
The 50th anniversary of Sino-Burma relations held in Yunnan on 16 December was a relatively modest affair, reports U Sein Kyi from the border:
No.05 - 12/2006
20 December 2006
Politics
China, Burma hold low-key golden anniversary
The 50th anniversary of Sino-Burma relations held in Yunnan on 16 December was a relatively modest affair, reports U Sein Kyi from the border:
Initially, prime ministers of both countries were to grace the ceremony at Manxi, known by Shans as Moeng Khawn, some 80 km from the Muse-Ziegao border. However only provincial officials from Yunnan and the delegation from Burma led by Brig-Gen Tin Naing Thein, Minister for Economy and Commerce, were able to make it.
"Still it's not something to cheer up the Burmese Opposition", said a Shan Chinese businessman. "Beijing still thinks as long as the Opposition remains divided, the military is a safer bet for business."
The event marked the anniversary of the meeting between Prime Minister Zhou Enlai and his Burmese counterpart Ba Swe in Manxi in 1956 to inaugurate the bridge that connects China's Wanding and Burma's Panghsai, also known as Kiukhok. This was followed by the opening of Six Countries Trade Fair at Muse two days later.
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