capital of the Wa Special Region. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)|A hospital owned by the Wa Special Region government in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)|A technician shows an MRI machine at a Wa Special Region government-owned hospital in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)|Inside a Burmese government hospital in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)|A UWSA solider on patrol during a summit of Burma’s ethnic armed groups in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)|An ethnic Wa woman weaves traditional textiles in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)|A peace monument erected in Panghsang Peace Square. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)|A spiritual shrine for supplicants in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)|A panoramic view of Panghsang from a surrounding hilltop. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)|A woman prays at a spiritual shrine in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)| An ongoing high-rise construction site in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)|An entrance to a compound in Panghsang where Wa government officials live. The sign at the checkpoint reads: ‘Restricted Area.’ (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)|A Burmese-language class is taught at a school in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)|Children walk past a school in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)
A hospital owned by the Wa Special Region government in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)
A technician shows an MRI machine at a Wa Special Region government-owned hospital in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)
Inside a Burmese government hospital in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)
A UWSA solider on patrol during a summit of Burma’s ethnic armed groups in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)
An ethnic Wa woman weaves traditional textiles in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)
A peace monument erected in Panghsang Peace Square. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)
A spiritual shrine for supplicants in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)
A panoramic view of Panghsang from a surrounding hilltop. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)
A woman prays at a spiritual shrine in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)
An ongoing high-rise construction site in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)
An entrance to a compound in Panghsang where Wa government officials live. The sign at the checkpoint reads: ‘Restricted Area.’ (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)
A Burmese-language class is taught at a school in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)
Schoolchildren smile for the camera at a Panghsang school. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)|A housing project in Panghsang
Children walk past a school in Panghsang. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)
PANGHSAN, Wa Special Region — Situated at the far eastern reaches of Burma’s Shan State, Panghsan is the capital of an autonomous enclave officially known as the Wa Special Region.
The town, bordering China’s Yunnan province, is controlled by the United Wa State Army (UWSA), Burma’s largest ethnic armed group, boasting a fighting force estimated at 20,000 men. The UWSA is the military arm of the United Wa State Party (UWSP), which formed after the collapse of the Communist Party of Burma (CPB) in 1989.
The area is largely populated by Wa people, one of 135 officially recognized ethnic groups in Burma, who have strong links to the neighboring ethnic Han Chinese in Yunnan. Visitors to the town are immediately struck by the pervasive Chinese influence, from road signs in the Chinese script to the dominance of spoken Mandarin on the streets and Chinese cuisine on restaurant menus.
Though the UWSA has tightly restricted access to the region over the years, the group invited a handful of journalists to cover a summit of Burma’s ethnic armed groups from May 1-6 in Panghsang.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, The Irrawaddy photographer JPaing brings you a rare glimpse of everyday life in the little-known town.
