Myanmar regained Koda, did not dare to make a move against the Wa State, and what was the power of the Wa State
In the last century, due to the corruption and incompetence of the Qing Dynasty, the two areas under the jurisdiction of Yunnan were illegally occupied by the British and became colonies.
Kokang was recovered by Burma and reduced to its territory, but only the Wa State remained independent, cherishing the motherland and longing to return to the embrace of the motherland. So, what strength did the Wa State rely on to resist the Burmese invasion?
First of all, Wa State has the same origin and destiny as Kokang and our country. Historically, Kokang and Wa were part of the Tang Dynasty's Nanzhao Kingdom, which was a vassal state of the Tang Dynasty.
These historical origins have given the Wa a deep affection and sense of belonging to the motherland, making it more determined and strong in resisting external pressures.
During the Song Dynasty, the Nanzhao Kingdom was destroyed, the Dali State was established, and Kokang and the Wa State became the territory of the Dali State. Although the Song dynasty was weakened and the surrounding countries no longer regarded it as the center, Kokang and Wa still shared a similar culture and language to the Song dynasty.
It was not until the Yuan Dynasty unified the whole country, incorporated Yunnan into its territory, and set up an official government here for local administration. In the Ming Dynasty, due to the remote geographical location of Yunnan and the large number of ethnic minorities, in addition to the establishment of the "Mu Wangfu" governor of Yunnan, the "Tusi" system was also implemented in the places where various ethnic minorities lived, which was managed by the Tusi.
However, due to the shortcomings of the Tusi system, these ethnic minorities often only knew about the Tusi and did not know about the existence of the imperial court.
Yunnan under the rule of the Qing Dynasty, Kokang and Wa became its territory. However, in 1897, due to the defeat of the British, the Qing ** was forced to sign the "Supplementary Provisions to the Treaty on the Renewal of the Yunnan-Burma Boundary Affairs", and Kokang was forcibly occupied by the British and became a colony.
Since then, the people living in Kokang have endured a long period of colonial rule, and have suffered from enslavement, exploitation and oppression for generations, making life extremely difficult.
In order to completely rule Kokang, the British forced the local Han people to change their ethnic title to "Kokang" and use "Guowen" to dilute the feelings of their family and country. The British army was still not satisfied, and forced the Qing ** to cede the Wa State.
The geographical location of the Wa State was important, and the Qing court resolutely refused to obey it. After the outbreak of World War II, Britain entered Wa State on the grounds of building the Yunnan-Burma Highway, and the people acquiesced.
Britain abandoned its overseas colonies after World War II and returned its territory to the country, but Kokang and Wa failed to return to the bosom of their homeland. On the contrary, in 1947, the Burmese constitution was amended to include Wa State as its territory, and although most of the local residents did not belong to Burma, they did not recognize this decree, but the local residents elected their own administrators.
Today, Kokang and Wa are colonies of Burma.
In 1949, after the defeat of the Kuomintang, some of the remnants of the defeated army were exiled to the Wa State, where they proclaimed themselves "King of the Mountain" by force. However, the Kuomintang did not win the support of the people, but instead provoked many revolts by the Wa people.
In 1966, the Burmese communist guerrillas began to attack Wa State, and the guerrillas of Bao Youxiang, Zhao Nilai and others were particularly powerful and famous.
After more than ten years of fierce fighting, the battle between the Burmese Communist guerrillas Bao Youxiang and others and the remnants of the Kuomintang finally came to an end, and the Wa State regained its freedom. On April 17, 1989, Bao Youxiang and others announced their separation from the Communist Party of Myanmar and established the Myanmar National Democratic United Party and the Myanmar National Democratic United Army.
However, the Burmese army did not agree with this decision, and clashes broke out between the two sides. Due to the strength of the Wa State, the Burmese army** could not gain an advantage, so it was forced to negotiate with the Wa State.
After negotiations, Bao Youxiang and others ostensibly accepted the rule of the Burmese army, but in fact maintained their own internal rule, and changed its name to "Myanmar Shan State Second Special Region", while Wa State insiders called it "Myanmar Second Special Region".
Until now, the Wa State is still ruled by itself, not by the Burmese army. As for Kokang, the situation is more complicated. During the Ming Dynasty, there was a toast system here, which continued until World War II.
At that time, Tusi's name was Yang Wenbing, who actively resisted Japan during the Anti-Japanese War, formed an anti-Japanese army, and was active on the anti-Japanese front line in Burma. He also had the idea of returning to China with his own land, and met with the people in Yunnan.
After careful consideration, Song Xilian made him the "Colonel Commander of the Kokang Self-Defense Forces" and authorized him to command Kokang. Since then, Kokang has always had the desire to return to his homeland, and there is such an opportunity.
However, in 1947, for the sake of personal gain, Yang Wenshan gave up the idea of returning to the motherland, and instead signed the "Panglong Agreement" with Aung San, the "father of the nation" of Myanmar, agreeing to jointly establish the Union of Myanmar and serve as the senior ** of Myanmar.
Even in 1948, Yang Wenshan's son Yang Zhencai publicly announced that Kokang officially joined Myanmar and became an inseparable part of Myanmar.
Yang Wenshan's rule turned Kokang, a territory that had been under Chinese rule for hundreds of years, into the territory of another country. Although Kokang was followed by many uprisings and revolutions, and even the establishment of an independent special zone for a short time, it was eventually drowned by the torrent of history, leaving only a few waves.
In 2015, Kokang's independence campaign ultimately failed, and the Myanmar Army** took over Kokang, renaming it the "Kokang Autonomous Region of Northern Shan State", ending its long period of independence.
As for the Wa State, although it faces a similar situation to Kokang, it is not ruled by the Burmese army**, why is that? An important reason is the size of the territory and the population.
The Wa State covers an area of more than 30,000 square kilometers, and although the territory is mountainous, there are still many areas suitable for human habitation. Kokang, on the other hand, is only more than 2,500 square kilometers and is sparsely populated.
Therefore, the territorial size of the two is not the same.
The size of the territory and the size of the population have an impact on a region that cannot be ignored. The larger the territory and the larger the population of a region, the more strategic depth and greater the national power it has.
In addition to this, a sense of national identity is also an important sign of a region. In the two regions of Kokang and Wa, the Wa have a stronger sense of national identity. This is because the Wa State was never colonized, while Kokang was colonized by the British for decades and generations.
This allows the Wa State to have a deeper historical and cultural heritage, and to better unite its own people and form a strong national cohesion. Therefore, despite the fact that Kokang has a smaller territory and population than Wa, Wa, with its strong sense of national identity, has been able to achieve more victories in the fight against the Burmese army.
Over the past few decades, the Kokang people have gradually abandoned their "Han Chinese" identity, calling themselves "Kokang" and using "Kokang language" and "Guowen". The long-term ** makes it difficult for Kokang people to distinguish whether they are Han or Kokang.
Especially those children born in the colonies, who have never been ruled by the Han Chinese, who have always been influenced by the British and Burma, still think of themselves as Han Chinese in their hearts?
For example, Yang Wenshan had the opportunity to lead the Kokang to join China, but for personal gain, he decisively joined Burma, renounced his Han Chinese identity, and became one of the leaders of Burma as an ethnic Kokang.
As a result, Kokang could easily be regained control by Myanmar.
Wa, a scenic region that was once ceded to the British, the people there were not led and ruled by people from other countries for a long time. The British soon returned to their own country, and the Burmese did not come to rule them.
Later, the Kuomintang became the new ruler there, but was soon driven out again. The leaders headed by Bao Youxiang declared independence and became an autonomous special zone. Therefore, the people of Wa have a clear understanding of their Han identity, and they also have a deep affection for our country, and they have always maintained contact with our country.
Kokang vs. Wa There is a significant difference in the sense of belonging between Kokang and Wa. Half of the people in Kokang yearn for Myanmar, half of them yearn for our country, and in Wa State, people have a stronger sense of identity with our country.
This difference in identity makes it easier for the Wa people to unite in the face of Myanmar, while Kokang is easy for the Myanmar to take advantage of. In addition, Kokang has adopted a system similar to that of the Federal Parliament because of its membership in the Union of Myanmar.
However, it is always the courageous upper classes that benefit from this system, not the common people. Therefore, when Burma regained Kokang, the people of Kokang were not particularly supportive of Kokang**.
In general, the sense of belonging and institutional differences between the Wa State and the Kokang State are the reasons why it is not easy for Myanmar to recover the Wa State and to recover the Kokang.
The uniqueness of the Wa State lies in the fact that due to its close relationship with our country, most of the systems implemented within it are borrowed from our country, and it can even be said that they are copied. For example, the Great Hall of the People system and the Communist Youth League system both originated from China.
The Wa State placed more emphasis on the people than on Kokang, which is why they were able to unite in the resistance to the Burmese reconquest.