Life in Thantlang

Many of the town inhabitants are surviving upon the slash-burn farming. There is a central market in the heart of the town where we can hardly buy fresh vegetables except expensive Burmese clothes. There is a small meat market where hundred of people swarmed to buy scarcely-sell meat mostly beef, mythun meat, buffalo meat and pork. Home grown chicken are usually hawking by owners from villagers in the street and some are kept in local shop. Even though the military regime restricted the people from freedom of movement and work, there are no beggars in Than Tlang and Chin State. No Mang orphans & captives mission have been in function since 1990s to give education and shelter to some children who are unable to go to school because of losing parents in their early life. Than Tlang people have been facing Burmese military forced portering, forced labour and arbitrary arrest since 1962. As Than Tlang is one the Chin state towns located closest to Indian border, Myanmar military often wrongfully accused locals as having connection with underground movements and imprisoned several people and tortured them. Due to the harsh and torturous mistreatment by Burmese army, many of Than Tlang locals left the town to evade military continual persecution and some ended up wandering to survive in India, some internally displaced to other towns within Burma notably in Rangoon areas and even to south east Asian countries.

Almost the entire population in the town support Aung San Suu Kyi and democracy. In 2010 military led election, no pro-military nominated representatives won seats from Than Tlang constituency.