Communications in Humanities Research ISSN: 2753-7072
Home> Volumes> Volume CHR Vol.91> Article
Research Article

Life in the Border Gap: A Study on the Identity and Survival Practices of Burmese Migrant Workers in the China-Myanmar Border Area -Taking Three Burmese Migrant Workers in Ruili City as Examples

Jianuo ChenThe Barstow School-Ningbo Campus*

* Corresponding author: [email protected]

Abstract

In recent years, the economy in the border area between China and Myanmar has developed rapidly, attracting a large number of Myanmar workers to continuously pour into Yunnan Province, China. This study takes three Myanmar workers in Ruili City as cases and uses the in-depth interview method to systematically explore their living conditions, identity recognition, and adaptation strategies in China. The research results show that the Myanmar workers mainly engage in low-skilled jobs in the secondary labor market and face multiple challenges such as language barriers, insufficient legal rights protection, and limited social integration. Although they exhibit characteristics of cultural integration between China and Myanmar and have adapted to local life to a certain extent, their identity predicament and institutional restrictions still significantly affect their long-term development and cross-border mobility. This study aims to reveal the real survival picture of Myanmar workers in the border gap, provide empirical evidence for policy formulation, and promote further attention to the rights protection and social integration issues of cross-border labor groups.

Keywords: China-Myanmar border; Myanmar migrant workers; identity recognition; survival practice; cross-border movement
Published: November 5, 2025
DOI: 10.54254/2753-7064/2025.NS29215
Volume: CHR Vol.91
pp. 48-54
Download PDF

References

  1. Yu, Y. (2021) Research on collaborative governance of cross-border floating population in border areas of Yunnan Province (Master's thesis, Yunnan University) Master https: //link.cnki.net/doi/10.27456/d.cnki.gyndu.2021.000300 doi: 10.27456/d.cnki.gyndu.2021.000300.
  2. Zhou, X. (2020) Barriers, forbearance and unity: a study of the survival mechanism of Burmese workers on the Sino Burmese border Southeast Asia (03): 77-85
  3. Yu, C., H. (2021) A study on the social network of Myanmar's Cross - border labor (Master's thesis, Yunnan University for Nationalities) Master https: //link.cnki.net/doi/10.27457/d.cnki.gymzc.2021.000002 doi: 10.27457/d.cnki.gymzc.2021.000002.
  4. Su, X.B., and Li, C.S. (2021) Bordering dynamics and the geopolitics of cross-border tourism between China and Myanmar. Political Geography 86: 102372.
  5. Zhang, S.H., Li, H.Y., & Liu, F. (2012) A review of identity research Psychological research, 5 (01): 21-27.
  6. Zhou, C., Wu, S., & Su, X. (2022) Cross-border Livelihood: Trade, labor, and internal displacement at the Myanmar-China Border. Geoforum, 129: 49-59.
  7. Tian, S.M., Tian, J., & Ding, Y.Y. (2021) Research on the current situation and Countermeasures of Myanmar migrant workers in the border economic cooperation zone--Taking Ruili border economic cooperation zone as an example Journal of Shanxi Economic Management Cadre College, 29 (01): 13-17.
  8. Ni, Z.J. (2022) On the trajectory characteristics of Burmese workers on the Sino Burmese border from the perspective of grassroots multilingualism (Master's thesis, Yunnan University) Master https: //link.cnki.net/doi/10.27456/d.cnki.gyndu.2022.003150 doi: 10.27456/d.cnki.gyndu.2022.003150.
  9. Veit, S., & Thijsen, L. (2021) Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 47(6): 1285-1304.
  10. Karin, D., Sarma, J., and Rippa, A. (2024) Infrastructures and b/ordering: how Chinese projects are ordering China–Myanmar border spaces. Territory, Politics, Governance 12(8): 1177-1198.