Analysts say that rising anti-China sentiment in Myanmar reflects widespread frustration with Beijing's perceived support for the country's military junta in the conflict-torn Southeast Asian nation.
Since the Myanmar military seized power in February 2021, critics have accused Beijing of backing the junta to safeguard its Belt and Road Initiative projects and maintain regional stability.
Public distrust of China also stems from its long-standing ties with Myanmar's military, according to analysts and activists.
"There's a widespread perception that China is stalling progress in the anti-coup revolution," said Lin Htet, a Myanmar activist who fled the country after the coup because of his outspoken opposition to the regime.
According to a survey by the Institute for Strategy and Policy-Myanmar, or ISP-Myanmar, released in mid-2024, 54% of key stakeholders in Myanmar held a negative view of China as a neighbor. That figure rose to 72% among civil society organizations, with respondents describing China as either "not good at all" or "not a good neighbor." Similarly, 60% of ethnic armed organizations and 54% of the People's Defense Forces, the armed wing of the National Unity Government, or local defense forces — formed after the 2021 coup to oppose the military regime — reported the same sentiment.
"Many believed China supported the military takeover at the time," said Nan Lwin, head of the Myanmar China studies program at ISP-Myanmar, an independent think tank. "While those sentiments initially subsided by mid-2021, they resurfaced later as Beijing began high-level engagements with the regime."
Htet Min Lwin, a Myanmar expert at York University in Toronto, Ontario, highlighted the growing anti-China sentiment in Myanmar since Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi's visit to Naypyitaw in August, where he met with junta leader Min Aung Hlaing.
"Historically, Myanmar's political stakeholders have rarely been united," Htet Min Lwin said. "Yet, during Wang Yi's visit, all revolutionary forces opposed to the military regime expressed unanimous anti-China sentiment. From political leaders to analysts, many view China's actions as interference."
Protests, public sentiment
In recent months, anti-military activists have staged protests and boycotts of products to draw attention to Beijing's perceived interference in Myanmar.
In November, there was a call to boycott products "Made in China."
Lin Htet recently organized a demonstration outside the Chinese Embassy in Washington. He said the protest was to call on China to stop meddling in Myanmar's affairs and to change its policies while emphasizing a desire to remain good neighbors.
"This is not about racial hatred," Lin Htet told VOA.
During the protest, he recalled two Burmese-born ethnic Chinese individuals, Kyal Sin and Khant Nyar Hein, who were killed during the early days of the anti-coup demonstrations in 2021.
"Our Chinese brothers and sisters gave their lives on the streets for democracy. We have not forgotten them to this day," he said, citing Kyal Sin's burial in a Chinese cemetery and quoting Khant Nyar Hein's mother's plea to "please don't hate Chinese in Myanmar."
Chinese Embassy responds
In a written reply to VOA, the Chinese Embassy in Myanmar said, "The current situation in Myanmar is of great concern," and it urged all relevant parties "to adhere to dialogue and consultation, and to cease fire as soon as possible."
"China is Myanmar's largest neighbor. No other country wants Myanmar to restore stability and realize development more than China," the embassy said. "On the Myanmar issue, China is committed to respecting Myanmar's sovereignty, independence, national unity and territorial integrity, non-interference in its internal affairs, and the Myanmar-owned and Myanmar-led peace process."
"It is hoped that all relevant parties in Myanmar will effectively safeguard the safety of Chinese enterprises, projects and personnel in Myanmar, create a secure environment for mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries, and better benefit the people of both countries," the statement said.
Call for diplomacy
According to ACLED data research, which specializes in conflict analysis, resentment among Myanmar's local population is expected to grow in 2025 amid China's increasing public support for the military. However, experts warn that alienating China could backfire.
"We can't do anti-China sentiment. We can't just demonize China. It is no longer the 15th century," said Sai Kyi Zin Soe, a Myanmar analyst. "We're neighbors, so we must maintain some diplomacy. We have to understand China's concerns and their political stance."
Htet Min Lwin also emphasized the need to engage with Beijing constructively.
"China's influence can slow the Myanmar resistance's revolutionary war [against the junta]," he said. "Rather than simply criticizing China, the opposition should engage its policymakers and clarify Myanmar's situation. Lobbying is vital. If the advocacy approach is effective, the revolutionary forces can maintain their momentum."
Michael Martin, a senior adviser at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the National Unity Government (NUG), Myanmar's opposition, lacks a coherent strategy to engage China.
"They don't have an idea how to work with China," Martin said. "They talk about, you know, 'Why won't you recognize us as a state actor?' That's not going to go very far with China. China recognizes the SAC [the military's State Administration Council] as the state actor. They can't have two."
A path forward
As Myanmar's conflict grinds on, analysts stress the importance of balancing public dissatisfaction with pragmatic engagement.
"China's strategy is to hedge its relations with multiple stakeholders in the country, whether it's the SAC or the NUG," Enze Han, an associate professor at the University of Hong Kong, said in an email to VOA.
For those seeking democracy, the challenge lies in finding a strategic approach that acknowledges China's regional interests while advancing Myanmar's aspirations for democracy and equality.
"We have absolutely no need to hate China or Chinese people," Lin Htet said. "But if the Chinese government continues interfering in Myanmar's affairs as it does now, it could face even more resistance, further alienating itself from the Burmese people."
