"Fleeing fighters" stream into China from Myanmar

NANSAN, China (Reuters) - Groups of men who said they had been fighting Myanmar government troops in fierce battles over recent days streamed into China on Sunday, underlining the longer-term problems the conflict there could cause for China.

The clusters of men, weary and sometimes clutching a few belongings, described continued bloodshed in the Kokang ethnic enclave in northeast Myanmar after government troops moved in, seeking to dislodge local rulers and their militia who have long controlled this mountainous terrain next to China.

Myanmar's offensive has thrown into question the future of the freewheeling Kokang buffer zone, where drug trafficking and gambling have long underpinned the economy. Newly arrived refugees said fighting continued in Kokang on Sunday.

Many of the fleeing men said they escaped on Saturday after the latest spasm of gunfights in Kokang, which is largely ethnic Chinese. Tens of thousands of people have already fled over the border to the town of Nansan in southwest China's Yunnan province and other refugee collection points.

"We're soldiers from the Kokang army. But we had to give up. The fighting was too much," said Xiong Zhaole, dressed in blue and walking, head bowed, with about six other men along a muddy mountain road near a border crossing. "We were trying to defend our people, but the Myanmar troops were pushing us back."

Xiong said he and his companions had been told by Chinese soldiers who received them at the border to swap their army greens for blue outfits, abandon any plans to fight and find somewhere to stay with relatives or in refugee camps.

Another man who abandoned fighting the advancing Myanmar troops and fled to China said the battle had turned against the local militia.

"We were humiliated by them," said Li Yingshu, a 25-year-old wearing the blue bodysuit given out by Chinese authorities. "We were not able to keep on fighting."

The battle erupted after the Myanmar military moved into the area as part of efforts to ensure ethnic groups participate in elections next year, according to reports by Chinese media and Myanmar exile groups.

One of those groups, the U.S. Campaign for Burma, said in a statement early on Sunday that about 700 troops from the Kokang militia had fled to China and surrendered their weapons.

A BRITTLE BALANCE

China is one of neighbour Myanmar's few diplomatic backers and has deflected pressure from Western governments over the military government's tough steps against protesters and pro-democracy campaigners.

But the many thousands of refugees highlight the brittle balance Beijing has sought between working with the Myanmar government and accommodating the local forces who have long run Kokang.

"I think ultimately the future of Kokang will have to be solved through negotiations, not war," He Shengda, an expert on Myanmar at the Yunnan Academy of Social Sciences, told Reuters.

He cited the example of a 1989 cease-fire agreement over control of the enclave.

"If the fighting continues, this could damage the stability of other, bigger border regions in Myanmar, and we certainly don't want to see that."

Many, but not all, of the refugees interviewed told Reuters they would be afraid to return home if the Myanmar army succeeds in putting the remote hill country under its control.

That could make Beijing's balancing act more difficult, and leave it with many displaced and angry Myanmar nationals to cope with in this remote hill country. The Chinese government has not officially called them refugees.

"We want Chinese people to run us. We're scared of the Myanmar army and now they have the upper hand," said Li Deming, a native of Kokang who had tramped into Nansan, where thousands of refugees are now living in tents and half-completed buildings.

Li said he would hesitate to return home if the Myanmar army routs the Kokang Group, which has ruled the area and is led by Peng Jiasheng, also known as Phone Kyar Shin.

Other refugees said the Myanmar troops were ruthless marauders.

"We've heard of killings by the Myanmar army, of many people killed, and decided we had to escape," said Jiang Zhengchi, a 42-year-old native of Kokang who had fled to Nansan on Sunday.

"If Myanmar takes control (of Kokang), I don't know if we can go back. But my land and everything are there. It's our land," he said as he finished a bowl of noodles next to a refugee camp.

China has called on Myanmar to maintain stability in the border region and urged further measures to protect the security and legal rights of Chinese citizens there.

Not all the refugees thought the local Kokang militia deserved sympathy. Some described Kokang as a lawless place financed by gambling and drugs.

"Kokang is run by warlords, and warlords and drugs are like twins, so that's how Kokang works," said one refugee in the main refugee camp in Nansan. He could not give his name, because the interview was interrupted by Chinese officials.

(Additional reporting by Royston Chan; Editing by Jason Subler)