Internal conflict in Burma

Internal conflict in Burma
Date April 1948 – Ongoing Location Burma (Republic of the Union of Myanmar) Status Ceasefire Uprisings Autocratic regime was in place at the time Civil unrest (bordering civil war) Regime changes to form the Union Solidarity and Development Party
Belligerents
Burmese military government (1962–2011) Burma Socialist Programme Party (1962–1988) Union Solidarity and Development Party (2011–2012) Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (informally allied with the junta until 2010)	Anti-junta factions: Karen National Union (1949-2012) Karen National Liberation Army Communist Party of Burma (1948–1988) Shan State Army – South (1964-2011) United Wa State Army (1988–2012) Kachin Independence Army Pa-O National Organization (1949-1991) Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army God's Army Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (turned against the junta in 2010) Supported by: Thailand United States People's Republic of China
Commanders and leaders
U Nu (1948–1962) Ne Win (1962–1988) Saw Maung (1988–1992) Than Shwe (1992–2010) Thein Sein (since 2010)	Bo Mya Thakin Than Tun Li Mi
Strength
43,000 (1951) 492,000 (2008) [citation needed]	6,000 communists (1951) 4,000+ Karens (1951) 14,000 KMTs Unknown numbers of various other factions
Casualties and losses
701,000 killed[citation needed]

Internal conflict in Burma continued after independence in 1948, as successive central governments of Myanmar fought myriad ethnic and political rebellions. Some of the earliest insurgencies were by Burman-dominated "multi-colored" leftists and by the Karen National Union (KNU). The KNU fought to carve out an independent Karen state from large swaths of Lower Burma. Other ethnic rebellions broke out only in the early 1960s after the central government refused to consider a federal style government. By the early 1980s, politically oriented armed insurgencies had largely withered away, but ethnic-based insurgencies remained alive and well during the conflict.

These insurgencies were supported or used by foreign states, exacerbating the isolation, suspicion and concern among Burmans over both their minorities and foreign powers. Some British had supported the Karen; East Pakistan (and then Bangladesh) backed the Muslim Rohingyas on their border with Middle Eastern backing. The Indians were said to be involved with the Kachin and the Karen. The Chinese assisted the CPB (later the Wa), the Naga and Kachin rebels. The United States supported the Kuomintang, and the Thai a wide variety of rebel groups, essentially creating buffer states or zones. Prior to the ceasefires, the largely Burman-dominated armed forces made futile annual dry season campaigns, only to see the rebels return after they left.

The Burman dominated central governments (civilian or military-alike) were able to reach a political agreement even though the stated goal of most, if not all, major ethnic insurgencies (including the KNU) is autonomy, not secession. Today, the government has signed uneasy ceasefire agreements with most insurgent groups but the army has not gained the trust of the local populace. The army has been widely accused of mistreating the local population with impunity, and is viewed as an occupying force in the ethnic regions.

More recently, the conflict was against the military regime that ruled the country from 1962 to 2011. The conflict was the oldest ongoing war in the world, and received international attention as a result of the 8888 Uprising in 1988, the work of activist Aung San Suu Kyi, the anti-government protests in late 2007, and the devastation wrought by Cyclone Nargis, which left over 80,000 dead and 50,000 missing in mid-2008.

Background

Burma gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1948. Immediately afterwards, communist rebels began an uprising against the new government. Uprisings and ethnic conflicts began breaking out in various provinces of Burma continuing into 1949. The Karen, led predominantly by the Christian Karen National Union (KNU) began fighting for an autonomous Karen state, Kawthoolei, in the eastern part of the country. The situation worsened when Buddhism was made the official religion, and questions regarding the rights of the Muslim Rohingya, Christian Karen, Chin, Kachin and other peoples under federalism were never really addressed; this was exacerbated by clauses in the constitution that granted nominal rights of secession to some groups. Due to the split of the party in power, the Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League (AFPFL) became a transitional military government from 1958 to 1960.

The 1962 Burmese coup d'état brought Ne Win to power, and widespread human rights violations in frontier areas followed, intensifying the insurgency. Today organizations out of the ethnic groups of the Karen and Shan (Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army) in the east of the country fight against the government. The increasing persecution of the Rohingya people in the western part of the country and racialization of Islam has led to the formation of small but active armed groups in the region, using refugee camps in Bangladesh as bases. Also in other regions, there are sporadic battles. Due to the conflicts, around 160,000 Burmese refugees live in Thailand and many more live in other countries in the region.

Recently, around 25 different ethnic groups have agreed ceasefires with the military government.

Thai involvement

The sack of Ayutthaya in 1767 continues to play an important role in the relations between the two countries.

Thailand has been the major contributor of supplies and arms since the crisis began. Thai leaders have a deep distrust for the Burmese, who have frequently invaded Thailand in past centuries. The enmity at least in the Thai political leadership manifested in the Thai "buffer zone" policy, which has provided shelter, and at various times actively encouraged and "sponsored" the several ethnic resistance groups along the border. Without weapons and ammunition from Thailand, insurgent groups would not be able to wage decades long war against the Burmese army.

Thai support is evident during the 1999 Burmese Embassy Siege where, despite condemnations from United Nations, United States and Burmese government calling it an 'act of terrorism', the Thai government responded that "the captors are students working for democracy, not terrorists".

1988 Uprising

Main article: 8888 Uprising

On 8 August 1988, student protests spread throughout the country. Hundreds of thousands of ochre-robed monks, young children, university students, housewives, and doctors demonstrated against the regime. The uprising ended on 18 September, after a bloody military coup by the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC). Thousands of deaths have been attributed to the military during this uprising. But authorities in Myanmar put the figure at around 350 people killed.

During the crisis, Aung San Suu Kyi emerged as a national icon. When the military junta arranged an election in 1990, her party, the National League for Democracy, won. However, the military junta refused to recognize the results and placed Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest. The State Law and Order Restoration Council would be a cosmetic change from the Burma Socialist Programme Party.

As a result of these uprisings the new government agreed to sign separate peace treaties with some insurgent groups.

2005-2012

In November 2005, the military junta began moving the government away from Yangon to a location near Kyatpyay just outside Pyinmana, to a newly designated capital city. This public action follows a longer term unofficial policy of moving critical military and government infrastructure away from Yangon to avoid a repetition of the events of 1988. On Armed Forces Day (27 March 2006), the capital was officially named Naypyidaw Myodaw (Royal City of the Seat of Kings), but is commonly called Naypyidaw. Over 7,000 people, almost all participating in anti-government uprisings, have been killed in the conflict.^{[citation needed]}

Since 2006, an offensive of the Burmese army against the Karen National Union has been going on in Karen State, resulting in the displacement of tens of thousands. An estimated half a million people have been displaced within eastern Burma due to armed conflict and the forcible relocation of villages.

There is an informal yet relatively widespread controversy about what would be the most accurate term to describe Burma's internal conflict. A common argument would be that a civil war would have started in 1948 as the result of the social, economic and political background of the country and thus current violence could not be considered an isolated phenomenon. This application of the term civil war to the ensuing conflict that began in Burma has been considered debatable by some, as another position held by several analysts would point out that the conflict's characteristics, scale and intensity have not reached those of a full blown civil war.^{[citation needed]}

In August 2007, about 160,000 Burma refugees fled to the Thai boundary provinces of Chiang Mai and Ratchaburi. The refugee camps lie mostly near the border with Burma. Of the refugees, about 62% are Karen. Thailand has formed humanitarian organizations to help the refugees.^{[citation needed]}

In 2011, the Burmese army undertook an offensive against rebel groups in Shan State, in a military operation called "Zwe Man Hein" (ဇွဲမန်ဟိန်း). Territory of the National Democratic Alliance Army and Shan State Army (North) was captured with most of the violent conflict taking place against the Shan State Army. The offensive was in response to a refusal of rebel groups to accept Burma's 'One Nation One Army' policy and integration to the border guards.

Ceasefire agreement

In January 2012, the Myanmar government announced a ceasefire agreement with Karen rebels. The ceasefire includes an agreement that mandates open communication between the government and Karen rebels, as well as allowing safe passage for Karen rebels in the country. The Myanmar government has given amnesty to over 6,000 KNU prisoners and reduced the sentences of 38,964 prisoners. The peace talks in Hpa-an were led by Railway Minister Aung Min, who is also the leader of the State Peace Deal Commission, and by General Mutu Saipo of the KNU. Aung Min said that one of the agreement's key points was that the talks would continue. Within 45 days the talks are due to reconvene for more substantive discussions.

A peace agreement between the KNU and Burmese government is one of the primary demands made by Western countries before economic sanctions can be lifted. Min Ko Naing, the leader of the pro-democracy uprisings in 1988, said upon his release from Tayet prison: "We need peace across the country immediately. Then we can work toward building national reconciliation." Specifically, he called for peace in ethnic minority areas and the release of all of the political prisoners who remain incarcerated, including Ko Ko Gyi [now released (13 January 2012)], 1990 MPs, ethnic group leaders, monks and all prisoners of conscience. "In Tayet Prison alone — where I was incarcerated — there are still political prisoners", he said.

See also

• History of Burma
• Kokang incident
• 2010–2011 Burma border clashes

External links

• Mizzima News Award-winning India-based news group run by exiled dissidents. See also: Mizzima News
• Democratic Voice of Burma Norwegian-based radio station committed to providing accurate and unbiased news to the people of Burma
• BBC News: The fighting spirit of Burma's Karen (2007)
• Help without frontiers – German relief organisation working for Shan and Karen refugees living in Camps on the border line to Thailand and inside of Burma
• MyanmaThadin Myanmar (Burma) News & Community Hub