"The sudden outbreak of hostilities in northern Shan State?s remote Kokang region has taken many by surprise. Some have posted messages on social media sites saying that ?those people” are not Myanmar citizens, and a government official even branded the hostilities a ?Chinese invasion.” While it is true that 90 percent of Kokang?s inhabitants are ethnic Chinese and few can speak the Myanmar language, reality is not quite that simple. The area is definitively on Myanmar?s side of the border with China, and the ethnic Kokang are one of the ?135 national races” officially recognized by the government. But how did they end up in Myanmar and who are they?..."