Jump to content

Karen National Liberation Army

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Citation bot (talk | contribs) at 14:49, 27 September 2023 (Add: publisher. Removed parameters. | Use this bot. Report bugs. | #UCB_CommandLine). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Karen National Liberation Army
ကညီဒီကလုာ် တၢ်ထူၣ်ဖျဲး သုးမုၢ်ဒိၣ်
LeadersSaw Mutu Say Poe
Bo Mya (1976–2000)
Saw Ba U Gyi  † (1949–1950)
Dates of operation1949 (1949) – present
HeadquartersLay Wah
Manerplaw (until 1995)
Active regionsKayah State
Kayin State
Tanintharyi Region
Bago Region
Mon State[1]
Myanmar-Thailand border
IdeologyKaren nationalism
Self-determination
Part of Karen National Union
Allies
4K Coalition[2][3]
OpponentsState opponents

Non-state opponents

Battles and warsInternal conflict in Myanmar

The Karen National Liberation Army (Template:Lang-ksw, Template:Lang-my; abbreviated KNLA) is the military branch of the Karen National Union (KNU), which campaigns for the self-determination of the Karen people of Myanmar (formerly Burma). The KNLA has been fighting the Burmese government since 1949. The KNLA was reported to have had a strength of approximately 20,000 in 1980, 3,000 in 2001, 5,000 in 2006,[7] 6,000 in 2012, and 7,000 in 2014.[8] As of early 2021, the KNLA is estimated to have at least 15,000 troops.[9] The army is divided into seven brigades[7] and a 'Special Force' reserved for special operations.[10]

History

Pre-1990

At the time of Burmese independence from the British in 1948, there was considerable tension between the Karen community and the Burmese majority. Some Karens sought independence while others attempted co-existence within Burma. The KNLA was previously called the Karen National Defence Organisation (KNDO). The KNDO was an armed organisation which was formed by the KNU in 1947 to defend Karen communities and interests. Most KNDO soldiers had previously served in the forces of British Burma.

In early 1949, the Burmese government arrested the Karen leader of the armed forces and replaced him with radical Burmese anti-Karen nationalist Ne Win. Continued attacks against Karen dominated townships around Rangoon and the arrest of Karen political leaders led the Karen national Union to declare armed struggle, and the world's longest running civil war began.

Early in the fighting, Karen forces overran much of northern Burma including towns such as Mandalay and established strong positions outside Rangoon at Insein Township. But lacking a port from which to receive military supplies, the Karen forces gradually withdrew to the southeast of Burma.

In 1976, the Karen National Union changed its policy on wanting an independent state, and joined a new alliance, the National Democratic Front. This alliance of armed ethnic political parties supported a federal union of Burma.[11]

1990–2010

In 1994 a group of Buddhist soldiers in the KNLA, claiming that the KNLA was unfairly dominated by Christians, broke away from the KNLA to form a new force, the DKBA, which soon organised a cease-fire with the Burmese military government.

In 1995 KNLA lost Kawmoora and Myawaddy to the DKBA. This considerably reduced the KNLA's border trade taxation.[12]

A group calling itself the KNU/KNLA Peace Council, led by the former KNLA brigade 7 commander Brig-Gen Htay Maung (Htein Maung), broke away from the KNLA in February 2007, and organised a peace talk as well as a cease-fire agreement with the Burmese military government without the approval of the KNU central committee.[13]

On 14 February 2008, Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan, the KNU secretary-general, was assassinated in Thailand.

On 13 May 2009, a senior Myanmar Army officer, Brig.-Gen. Kaung Myat, was killed by the KNLA. He had been the commander of the No. 5 Military Operations Command.[14] The next month, on 19 June, DKBA soldiers began attacking the KNLA Brigade 7 headquarters, which they then captured on 23 June.[15]

2010–present

See also: 2010–12 Myanmar border clashes

During 2010, increasing numbers of Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) soldiers defected to the KNLA, or fled to Thailand, following the announcement that the DKBA would be absorbed into the Burmese military government's Border Guard. The DKBA had previously been allied to, but distinct from, government forces.

In November 2010, following the general election of 2010, large parts of the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army are alleged to have mutinied and re-aligned themselves with the KNLA, resulting in the escalating conflict with junta troops. The two rebel armies have formed an alliance, in advance of a possible crackdown by the military government.[16]

The KNLA, along with its parent organisation the KNU, signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) with the government of Myanmar on 15 October 2015, along with several other insurgent groups.[17]

In September 2016, KNLA fighters began clashing with members of the Mon National Liberation Army (MNLA), the armed wing of the New Mon State Party (NMSP), in the Tanintharyi Region. Both the KNU and NMSP were signatories of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) at the time of the fighting. A temporary bilateral truce was reached between the two groups on 14 March 2018.[1]

Tensions between the KNU and the Tatmadaw increased as unrest swept the country following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état. On 27 March 2021, KNLA Brigade 5 overran a Myanmar Army base near the Thai border, killing 10 soldiers including a deputy battalion commander. The Myanmar army launched multiple airstrikes on Karen villages in retaliation.[18][19]

On 27 April 2021, the KNLA captured a Myanmar Army base along the Salween river, bordering Thailand's Mae Sam Laep sub-district. A civilian in on the Thai side of the border was wounded by a stray bullet during the battle.[20][21]

On 9 September 2021, KNLA Brigades 3 and 5 captured a Myanmar Army camp in Kyaukkyi Township in Bago Region.[22][23]

Foreign volunteers

A number of foreigners have gone to Myanmar to fight for the KNLA.

Dave Everett, a former Australian SAS soldier, fought for the KNLA and was later arrested in Australia for trying to steal money to fund the KNLA. Des Ball, Professor at ANU, has advised them on military strategy.

Thomas Bleming, an American, claims to have fought for the Karen and has written a book called War in Karen Country.[24]

Three of the KNLA's French volunteers were killed in action fighting for the KNLA: Jean-Phillipe Courreges (killed 1985), Olivier Thiriat (killed 1989), and Guillaume Oillic (killed 1990).

References

  1. ^ a b c "KNU and NMSP agree to temporary ceasefire". The Myanmar Times. 14 March 2018. Archived from the original on 29 April 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
  2. ^ "Intense clash in Mese, Karenni State". Democratic Voice of Burma (in Burmese). 20 June 2023.
  3. ^ "The 4K, the clash in Mese, and the military movement of Karenni State". People's Spring (in Burmese). 20 June 2023.
  4. ^ "The Emergence of the ULA/AA and Question of the Rohingya Crisis". 26 January 2023. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
  5. ^ "Message from Lieutenant General Bao Jue Hai, Deputy Commander of the Karen National Liberation Army, to the Graduation Ceremony of the Burmese People's Liberation Army". 8 April 2022. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
  6. ^ "Pyusawhti militia". Myanmar NOW. Archived from the original on 12 May 2022. Retrieved 23 June 2022.
  7. ^ a b Asia Times
  8. ^ Rotberg, Robert I. (June 1998). Burma: Prospects for a Democratic Future, by Robert I. Rotberg. Brookings Institution Press. ISBN 0815791690. Archived from the original on 28 August 2017. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
  9. ^ "ชาติพันธุ์กระเหรี่ยง ต่อสู้เพื่อความฝัน "รัฐกะเหรี่ยง"". pptvhd36.com (in Thai). Archived from the original on 30 March 2021. Retrieved 3 April 2021.
  10. ^ 'Special Force' Joins KNLA on High Alert Archived 1 May 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ^ Karen National Union website www.knuhq.org
  12. ^ ISBN 87-11-23074-6 Carsten Jensen's source is Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan
  13. ^ Karen Peace Council Rejects BGF Proposal Archived 25 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  14. ^ "Senior Burmese Commander killed by KNLA Soldiers". Archived from the original on 30 April 2011. Retrieved 27 November 2010.
  15. ^ "Mae La Refugees Fear DKBA Attack". Archived from the original on 29 April 2011. Retrieved 28 November 2010.
  16. ^ "Myanmar rebel armies join forces". Al-Jazeera English. 12 November 2010. Archived from the original on 13 November 2010. Retrieved 12 November 2010.
  17. ^ "Myanmar signs ceasefire with eight armed groups". Reuters. 14 October 2015. Archived from the original on 3 October 2020. Retrieved 15 October 2017.
  18. ^ "Six die in Myanmar Air Strikes on Karen Villages Near the Thai Border". Archived from the original on 27 May 2021. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
  19. ^ "Myanmar army launches air strikes in Karen state, group says". Reuters. 27 March 2021. Archived from the original on 11 May 2021. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
  20. ^ "Myanmar army base burned down by guerrillas; airstrikes follow". USA Today. Archived from the original on 2 May 2021. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
  21. ^ "Myanmar insurgents say they razed military base near Thai border". Bangkok Post. Archived from the original on 11 September 2022. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
  22. ^ "KNLA and KNDO Capture Tatmadaw Camp". Archived from the original on 29 September 2021. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
  23. ^ "KNU occupies Myanmar military base in Bago". Archived from the original on 16 September 2021. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
  24. ^ Bleming, Thomas James (2007). War in Karen Country: Armed Struggle for a Free and Independent Karen State in Southeast Asia. New York; Bloomington, Ind.: iUniverse. ISBN 978-0-595-69327-6. OCLC 609978846.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Karen_National_Liberation_Army&oldid=1177423637"