Lay Kay Kaw Myothit (; ) is a town in

Myawaddy Township Myawaddy Township (, Phlone ; ) is a township of Myawaddy District in the Kayin State of Burma (Myanmar). It is the only township in Myawaddy District. The administrative seat is the town of Myawaddy. Boundaries Myawaddy Township borders on:

Kayin State Kayin State (, ; ; , ), formerly known as Karen State, is a Administrative divisions of Myanmar, state of Myanmar. The capital city is Hpa-An, also spelled Pa-An. The terrain of the state is mountainous; with the Dawna Range running along the ...

in southeastern Myanmar. Nine miles in the south of

Myawaddy Myawaddy (; ; ; ; Eastern Pwo language, Phlone ) is a town in southeastern Myanmar, in Kayin State, close to the border with Thailand. Separated from the Thai border town of Mae Sot by the Moei River (Thaungyin River), the town is the most impo ...

, it is close to the border with

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

. In recognition of the

Burmese military The Tatmadaw, also known as the Sit-Tat, is the armed forces of Myanmar (formerly Burma). It is administered by the Ministry of Defence (Myanmar), Ministry of Defence and composed of the Myanmar Army, the Myanmar Navy and the Myanmar Air For ...

's negotiations with

Karen National Union The Karen National Union (; abbreviated KNU) is a political organisation with an armed wing, the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), that claims to represent the Karen people of Myanmar. It operates in mountainous eastern Myanmar and has un ...

, the oldest ethnic armed organization in the country, Lay Kay Kaw was built as a "town of peace" in 2015.

History

2015–2020

With the support of

Nippon Foundation of Tokyo, Japan, is a private, non-profit grant-making organization. It was established in 1962 by Ryōichi Sasakawa. The foundation's mission is to direct Japanese motorboat racing revenue into philanthropic activities, it uses this money t ...

, Lay Kay Kaw was built in 2015 as a cooperation between the then-chief minister of Kayin State, Zaw Min, and KNU's chairperson, Saw Mutu Say Poe. Divided into six quarters, it has a population of more than 3000. Despite administration of the

Kayin State Government Kayin State Government () is the cabinet of Kayin State. The cabinet is led by chief minister, Nang Khin Htwe Myint. Cabinet (April 2016–present) See also State and Region Government of Myanmar The State and Region Governments () are ...

, the town has been controlled ''de facto'' by the KNU for six years.

After the 2021 coup d'état

Since February 2021, anti-coup protesters and those who joined the

civil disobedience movement Civil disobedience is the active and professed refusal of a citizen to obey certain laws, demands, orders, or commands of a government (or any other authority). By some definitions, civil disobedience has to be nonviolent to be called "civil". ...

came to Lay Kay Kaw to evade the military. After the military conducted a search in the town in 14 December, clashes broke out between the military and local armed groups the next day. At least 2500 local villagers fled to

Mae Sot Mae Sot (; , ; , ; , ) is a city in western Thailand that shares a border with Myanmar to the west. It is notable as a trade hub and for its substantial population of Burmese migrants and refugees. The city is part of Tak Province, 87 km fr ...

, border town in Thailand. After a shell landed in a sugarcane plantation, and a small fire broke out, Thai authorities, through Thai–Myanmar Border Committee, issued a warning that "it was prepared to retaliate if stray artillery shells landed on Thai soil", and

Thai armed forces The Royal Thai Armed Forces (RTARF; ; ) are the armed forces of the Kingdom of Thailand. The Highest Commander of the Royal Thai Armed Forces (จอมทัพไทย; ) is the King of Thailand. The armed forces are managed by the Ministr ...

were deployed in the border area. On 20 December, KNU urged the UN and international community to establish the area as a

no-fly zone A no-fly zone, also known as a no-flight zone (NFZ), or air exclusion zone (AEZ), is a territory or area established by a military power over which certain aircraft are not permitted to fly. Such zones are usually set up in an enemy power's terri ...

. On April 21, 2024, 24 Filipinos trafficked by a Chinese scam centre in the town's Dong Feng Park were rescued by police attachés of the Philippine Embassy of Thailand with the cooperation of Thai authorities.

References

{{Kayin State Populated places in Kayin State Planned communities