The Kachin themselves number about two million people. They live in the northern division, called Kachin state, and they were granted statehood by both the British government and by the early leadership of the country of Burma, under the Panglong Agreement, February 12, 1947, known today as Union Day.
Le statut d'État a été accordé par le gouvernement britannique et par l'ancienne classe dirigeante de la Birmanie, en vertu de l'accord de Panglong, du 12 février 1947, célébré aujourd'hui comme Jour de l'Union.