The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says more than 30,000 people have fled Myanmar's northern Kokang region, in the aftermath of clashes that began on March 6 this year. 

In fact, conflict in the region started far before then, and have resulted in tens of thousands of people fleeing their homes, with many of them pouring over the border into southwest China. The war has inflicted tremendous suffering on local residents. As CGTN found out, many left their homes in northern Myanmar at an early age. 

17-year old Zhang Da used to live in the Kokang region of Myanmar’s Shan State. To escape the clashes there, he decided to leave his hometown at the age of ten. 

Zhang’s parents divorced when he was still very young. His family thought he was killed during the war. The boy has a younger sister and brother in Myanmar, but they have had no contact since he left home.‍

His is currently working in sugar cane fields in southwest China’s Yunnan Province, bordering Myanmar. The work provides him with the money he needs to survive, but it's exhausting. One of his dreams is to settle down, have a home of his own and stop having to move around.