On March 4-6, 1947, less than a month after the signing of the historic Panglong Agreement, the first ever friendship conference between Chin and Bamar leaders was held in Htilin Township, in the shadow of the Chin Hills. Organized by then Chin leader Wan Tu Mong, the three-day event was reportedly joined by more than 10,000 people eager to show their support for the Panglong Agreement. The participants vowed to fight together to end British rule, and to work for and share the fruits of nation building after independence. As a symbol of Chin-Bamar friendship, a monument was put up at the venue. General Aung San originally planned to attend the conference, but could not, so Information Minister Dee Dok U Ba Cho and Anti-Fascist People’s Freedom League leaders attended the conference instead.
Wan Tu Mong and other Chin leaders made their names serving as ministers after independence, and Vum Khaw Hau served as ambassador to France,Netherlands,Cambodia,Indonesia,Austria and Hungary. In the military arena, Captain Taik Chon in 1950 became the only Chin soldier so far to receive the Aung San Thuriya medal—the Myanmar Armed Forces’ highest and most prestigious award, bestowed for gallantry and bravery in the face of the enemy.
