Chinland, officially the State of Chinland, is a

self-governing Self-governance, self-government, self-sovereignty or self-rule is the ability of a person or group to exercise all necessary functions of regulation without intervention from an external authority. It may refer to personal conduct or to any ...

polity A polity is a group of people with a collective identity, who are organized by some form of political Institutionalisation, institutionalized social relations, and have a capacity to mobilize resources. A polity can be any group of people org ...

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...

. Its claimed territory encompasses

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 ...

Chin State Chin State (, ) is a state in western Myanmar. Chin State is bordered by Sagaing Division and Magway Division to the east, Rakhine State to the south, the Chattogram Division of Bangladesh to the west, and the Indian states of Mizoram to th ...

. It controls approximately one third of the

in western Myanmar, along the borders with

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

and

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

History

The state was established following the adoption of the Chinland Constitution on 6 December 2023 by the

Chin National Front The Chin National Front (; CNF) is a Chin people, Chin Nationalism, nationalist political organization in Myanmar. According to its website, its armed wing, the Chin National Army (CNA), fights the government of Myanmar. The group was founded on 20 ...

(CNF) and local administration organisations, establishing the Chinland Council as its governing body and changing the former name of

to Chinland. This constitution was objected to by resistance groups from 5 townships (Falam, Tedim, Kanpetlet, Mindat and Matupi) out of the 9 townships in Chin State. The constitution aimed at creating a nation state for the

Chin people The Chin peoples (, ) are collection of ethnic groups native to the Chin State, Myanmar that speak the Kuki-Chin-Mizo languages, which are closely related but mutually unintelligible. The Chin identity, as a pan-ethnic identity, is a modern c ...

following the principles of self-determination with a "coming together federal vision", i.e., a bottom-up approach for the establishment of future federal union in Myanmar. The Chinland Council, composed of 27 CNF members, 14 MPs and 68 members of local administrations, received the support of 14 of the 17 recognised local administration organisations in Chin State, with the exception of

Falam Falam (, ) is a town in north-western Burma (Myanmar) near Burma's western border with the Indian state of Mizoram. The town was founded by the Taisun tribe. The British arrived to Falam in 1892, and became an important base for British rule of ...

Tedim Tedim (, , (Tedim language, Zo: ''Tedim Khuapi'', pronounced ; is a town and the administrative seat of Tedim Township in Chin State, Myanmar. It is the second largest town in Chin State, after Hakha (the capital city of Chin State). The town's f ...

, Kanpetlet, Matupi and

Mindat Mindat may refer to: Places * Mindat District, a district in Chin State, Myanmar (Burma), consisting of two townships and many villages ** Mindat Township, Myanmar *** Mindat, Chin State, a town in Chin State, Myanmar, administrative seat of Mindat ...

. On 17 May 2024, the

National Unity Government A national unity government, government of national unity (GNU), or national union government is a broad coalition government consisting of all parties (or all major parties) in the legislature, usually formed during a time of war or other na ...

and the Chinland Council held an online meeting for the first time. Although the details of the meeting were not stated, both parties agreed to hold more meetings in the future.

Governance

Chinland's government is divided in three branches — executive, legislative and judiciary — overseen by the Chinland Council, expected to fully establish the three branches by January 2024. The executive is expected to include 15 ministries, among which ministries for Defense, Home Affairs, Foreign Affairs and Immigration. The

Chinland Constitution Chinland, officially the State of Chinland, is a Self-governance, self-governing polity in Southeast Asia. Its claimed territory encompasses Myanmar's Chin State. It controls approximately one third of the Chin State in western Myanmar, along ...

also establishes the

Chin National Army The Chin National Army (; abbreviated CNA) is a Chin ethnic armed organisation in Myanmar (Burma). It is the armed wing of the Chin National Front (CNF), and was founded on 20 March 1988 alongside it. The CNA signed a ceasefire agreement with ...

as the state's only national army. Nonetheless, local administrations still maintain their own armed forces, most of them as part of the

Chinland Defense Force The Chinland Defense Force (; abbreviated: CDF) is a rebel group in Myanmar. It was formed in response to the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état to protect Chin State from the military junta. The CDF claims that they do not attack the military withou ...

and organised in the

Chin Joint Defense Committee The chin is the forward pointed part of the anterior mandible (List_of_human_anatomical_regions#Regions, mental region) below the lower lip. A fully developed human skull has a chin of between 0.7 cm and 1.1 cm. Evolution The presence of a we ...

Administrative divisions

The townland and regional divisions of Chinland are as follows: * Daai *

Hakha Hakha (, ; formerly rendered Haka) is the capital of Chin State in Myanmar. Hakha is located in the northeast of Chin State, with a total area of about . The city of Hakha is located on a plateau at more than above sea level. Although relative ...

* Hualngo *

Kanpetlet Kanpetlet (, ) is a town in the Chin State of West Myanmar and the home of the Kanpetlet Township administration body. Geography It is known for Nat Ma Taung, Mt. Victoria, the highest peak in the Chin Hills and one of the highest in Western My ...

* Lautu * Matupi * Mara *

* Ngawn *

Paletwa Paletwa (, ) is one of the westernmost towns of Myanmar, in Chin State, 18 kilometres from the border with Bangladesh. On the other side of the border, lies Chittagong Division of Bangladesh. Paletwa town's population was about 97,000 in 2014. Th ...

* Senthang *

Thantlang Thantlang (, ; also Thlantlang or Htantlang in Burmese transliteration) is a town and the administrative center of Thantlang Township in Chin State, western Myanmar (formerly Burma). Names Thantlang was formerly known as Thlan Tlang ("Cemeter ...

* Zanniat * Zophei * Zotung

Symbols

The flag used by the Chinland Council is identical to that of the

, which differs from the Chin State's previous flag. It consists of three horizontal bands of red, white and blue, charged with two

hornbill Hornbills are birds found in tropical and subtropical Africa, Asia and Melanesia of the family Bucerotidae. They are characterized by a long, down-curved bill which is frequently brightly coloured and sometimes has a horny casque on the upper ...

s in the center.

Status

While claiming to strive for a "federal democratic union", the constitution did not discuss Chinland's status with respect to

, leading to speculation about potential separatism. However, the Chinland Council's constitution does explicitly state that a federal union is one of its main goals and that the Chinland Council and Government will work in coordination with the democratic

, the

National Unity Consultative Council The National Unity Consultative Council (; NUCC) is an advisory body of the National Unity Government of Myanmar. Formed in response to the 2021 Myanmar coup d'etat, the NUCC seeks to overthrow the military dictatorship and build a federal demo ...

, and other "federal units." Furthermore, some members of the previous

Interim Chin National Consultative Council Interim may refer to: Temporary organizational arrangements (general concept) *Provisional government, emergency government during the creation, collapse, or crisis of a state; also called interim government *Caretaker government, temporary rule b ...

, established in 2021, have rejected the authority of the Chinland Council, fearing a ratification of the constitution would lead to the dissolution of the ICNCC. Moreover, the Chin community has had a mixed reaction to the formation of the Chinland Council. Many have hailed it as a milestone in Chin history, but others doubt its validity and inclusivity due to the absence of some stakeholders in its formation.

Conflicts with other Chin groups

While the Chinland Council claims to be the sole representative of Chin interests, the establishment of Chinland has not been universally accepted within the Chin community. The

Chin Brotherhood Alliance The Chin Brotherhood (CB) is a military and political alliance between several ethnic armed organisations active in Chin State, Myanmar. Formed on 30 December 2023 during the Myanmar civil war, the claimed goal of the alliance is to foster colla ...

, formed on 30 December 2023, comprises several ethnic armed organizations active in Chin State, including the Chin National Defence Force, PDF-Zoland, and various Chinland Defense Forces. This alliance opposes the Chinland Council's authority, criticizing it for taking advantage of the conflict for territorial gains. On 31 January 2024, tensions escalated when the

Chinland Defense Forces The Chinland Defense Force (; abbreviated: CDF) is a rebel group in Myanmar. It was formed in response to the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état to protect Chin State from the military junta. The CDF claims that they do not attack the military withou ...

(CDF), alongside the

(CNA), launched an offensive against the

Maraland Defence Force {{Use Indian English, date=December 2018 Maraland is a region in the southeastern part of Mizoram state, India. The region is one of the three Autonomous District Councils in the state. See also *Mara Thyutlia Py Mara Thyutlia Py (MTP) i ...

(MDF), a member of the Chin Brotherhood Alliance, following the alleged killing of a CNA soldier and detention of CDF-Mara soldiers by the MDF. Subsequent clashes occurred in Paletwa Township near the Chin State-Rakhine State border, underscoring the ongoing divisions and armed confrontations within Chinland. On 20 May 2024, the Zomi Community of Queensland Inc. condemned the CNA for what they described as invading peaceful Zomi-inhabited areas in Myanmar through the villages of Muallum and Cingpikot in the Tedim, Tonzang, and Cikha townships, forcing villagers to flee and endure days without food or water. They emphasized that the Zomi, a peace-loving community, have endured the CNA's oppressive actions for the past 20 years and called for solidarity and condemnation of these actions, asserting that anyone supporting or funding the CNA's violence and human rights abuses is equally responsible for these atrocities.

References

{{reflist States and territories established in 2023 Chin State 2023 establishments in Myanmar Separatism in Myanmar Territorial disputes of Myanmar Myanmar civil war (2021–present) Proposed countries States with limited recognition