The Twante Canal ( ) is a

canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface ...

that connects the

Irrawaddy River The Irrawaddy River (, , Ayeyarwady) is the principal river of Myanmar, running through the centre of the country. Myanmar’s most important commercial waterway, it is about 1,350 miles (2,170 km) long. Originating from the confluence of the ...

and the Yangon river in

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

. The canal is a heavily used short cut between the city of

Yangon Yangon, formerly romanized as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar. Yangon was the List of capitals of Myanmar, capital of Myanmar until 2005 and served as such until 2006, when the State Peace and Dev ...

and the Irrawaddy Division. The canal is named after the town of Twante, located near the canal's mid-way point. The canal was the quickest route from Yangon to the

Irrawaddy Delta The Irrawaddy Delta or Ayeyarwady Delta lies in the Irrawaddy Division, the lowest expanse of land in Myanmar (Burma) that fans out from the limit of tidal influence at Myan Aung to the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea, to the south at the mout ...

until the 1990s when roads between Yangon and the Irrawaddy Division became usable year round. The canal is still heavily used. Due to the lack of regular maintenance, the canal has become silted and narrower over the years. In 2010, the mouth of the canal was widened by . However, plans to put in concrete embankments were yet to be carried out, and the navigation problems still remain. Twante Bridge is only bridge that spans the Twante Canal.

History

The construction work on Twante Canal began in 1903 during the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

colonial rule. The canal was completed in 1915. The Twante Canal shortened the distance by the Kanaungto creek between Yangon and the Irrawaddy river.Hunter, et al, p. 250 The Irrawaddy Flotilla Company, Ltd., which handled nearly all inland carrier traffic in British Burma, ran daily services from Yangon to the Irrawaddy delta and Upper Burma. In 1935, the canal was widened and deepened to allow for the Irrawaddy Flotilla Company's large steamers to Mandalay. Previously larger steam ships had to go out the Yangon river and up one of the larger mouths of the Irrawaddy. Following Burma's independence from Britain, the canal was briefly occupied by the

Communist Party of Burma The Communist Party of Burma (CPB), also known as the Burma Communist Party (BCP), is an underground communist party in Myanmar (formerly Burma). It is the oldest existing political party in the country. Founded in 1939, the CPB initially fo ...

(CPB) during the start of their armed insurgency. At the same time Karen militia attacks increased tension in the

Irrawaddy delta The Irrawaddy Delta or Ayeyarwady Delta lies in the Irrawaddy Division, the lowest expanse of land in Myanmar (Burma) that fans out from the limit of tidal influence at Myan Aung to the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea, to the south at the mout ...

. Prime minister

U Nu Nu (; ; 25 May 1907 – 14 February 1995), commonly known as Burmese names#Honorifics, U Nu and also by the honorific name Thakin Nu, was a prominent Burmese people, Burmese statesman and the first Prime Minister of Union of Burma. He was ...

and Karen leader Saw Ba U Gyi attempted to de-escalate by allowing the

Karen National Defence Organisation The Karen National Defence Organisation (; ; KNDO) is the older of two main military branches of the Karen National Union (KNU), the other being the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA). The KNDO fought against the government of Myanmar from 1 ...

to recapture Twante and the canal. However, panic increased in

as badly informed

Bamar The Bamar people (Burmese language, Burmese: ဗမာလူမျိုး, ''ba. ma lu myui:'' ) (formerly known as Burmese people or Burmans) are a Sino-Tibetan-speaking ethnic group native to Myanmar (formerly known as Burma). With an esti ...

news organisations reported on this as an impending Karen insurrection. This misunderstanding was one reason for the formal outbreak of the Karen conflict

References

{{coord, 16, 43, 26, N, 95, 57, 54, E, display=title Yangon Region Canals in Myanmar Canals opened in 1883