The Three Pagodas Pass border gate to Thailand at Payathonzu Town in Kyainseikgyi Township, Karen State was reopened, to pedestrian traffic only, on 18 August 2024, after having been shut for two months.

This followed protests by Myanmar workers and negotiations to re-open the crossing between relevant parties, according to sources on the border.

The border gate was closed on 17 June 2024 by the authorities on both sides of the border.

Due to the disruptions to travel and the flow of goods caused by the closure, workers in Myanmar staged protests on 15 and 16 August to demand the border gate be reopened.  

Subsequently, on 17 August, officials from both countries met to negotiate reopening the border gate. The gate was reopened the next day, 18 August. But, some restrictions remain in place and vehicles are not yet allowed to cross, according to a resident of Payathonzu Town.

He said: “No vehicles, big or small, are allowed to cross yet. Workers can only walk across. Even if you want to go and buy kitchen appliances from Thailand, you can only purchase small things. There’s a slight easing, but restrictions remain.”

Local Myanmar media reports said that during the discussions to open the border gate, the Myanmar border authorities said that the border gate needed to be opened to allow Myanmar students to travel to schools in Thailand, Myanmar workers to go to work in Thailand, and Thai goods to be imported to Myanmar.

The junta-aligned Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA) controls Kyainseikgyi Township in Karen State which includes the town of Payathonzu and the Three Pagodas Pass Border crossing.

The border crossing was closed because the DKBA were in a dispute with the Thailand Border Guard Force over road maintenance issues that led to the  border gate first being closed from the Myanmar side before also being closed from the Thai side.