On November 21, 2020, a member of the ruling National League for Democracy (NLD) party was murdered after winning a close race by 54 votes over the candidate of the Shan National League for Democracy (SNLD) in a constituency in northern Shan State in Myanmar's general election.incidentAlthough the SNLD has denied any involvement in the incident, it appears to have deepened the rift between the political parties. In addition, in Shan State, as well as in Kachin, Kayin, and Mon states, there have been seriouspublic safety issueIn some districts, voting could not even be conducted because of the

In recent years, the conflict in Rakhine State in southwestern Myanmar and Rohingya refugees fleeing from the conflict in the southwest of the country, which has become a major threat to peace in Myanmar, have attracted worldwide attention, but there are also multiple armed conflicts in northern and eastern Myanmar that have continued for many years. This article focuses on the conflicts in Shan, Kachin, and Kayin states in northern and eastern Myanmar.

Myanmar government troops welcoming foreign guests (Photo: nznationalparty / Flickr[)CC BY-NC-ND 2.0])

Birth of Burma

Myanmar is located in the northwestern part of the Indochina Peninsula, adjacent to Bangladesh, India, China, Laos, and Thailand, with the southern and western parts facing the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea. The population is approximately 56 million, of which approximately 60% identify themselves as Burmese, and the rest are made up of numerous ethnic minorities. The official language is Burmese, but many other ethnic minority languages and English are also spoken. The northern part of the country and the eastern and western parts are highlands, while the Ayeyarwady River flows from north to south in the south, and along the river there are large cities such as Yangon, with a population of over 5 million, and the capital city of Nepedee, while the lowland delta area is widespread.

Going back in history, various kingdoms and empires have expanded, merged, and divided repeatedly, resulting in the creation of borderlines that define the territories where various peoples live today. A representative dynasty was established in 1057.Pagan Kingdomand was built mainly by the Burmese. The Pagan Kingdom lasted for about 200 years, but collapsed in the late 13th century due to an attack by the Yuan army. After that, the area around present-day Myanmar was divided, with the Shan people ruling the north and the Mon and Burmese ruling the south, but the Burmese gradually gained the upper hand in the south, and in the first half of the 16th century, the Burmese once again unified what is now southern Myanmar,Tungusic Dynasty (of India, approx. 848-1279 CE)was built. In the area where Shan State and Kachin State are located today, the Inwa Dynasty, led by the Shan people, was established, but was destroyed by the Tungus in the 16th century. The Shan people were later divided into several self-governing groups led by small chiefs, but they were united with the Tunggu dynasty through a tribute relationship. The states around present-day Myanmar continued to divide and unify, but in the 19th century, pressure from the British and Dutch increased, and after the First Anglo-Burmese War from 1824 to 1826 and the Second Anglo-Burmese War in 1852, the territory of present-day Myanmar came under British rule in 1885.

A temple from the Pagan Kingdom period in Myanmar. Most of the people in Myanmar believe in Buddhism. (Photo: Piqsel [Public Domain])

At that time, the British ruled the area that includes present-day India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh as the Indian Empire. The British colony of Burma and its surrounding states were ruled as the Burma State of the British Indian Empire, with its capital in the southern city of Rangoon (now Yangon). On the other hand, the northern and eastern regions of Burma inhabited by the Shan, Kachin, and Karen people were part of the Burma State of the Indian Empire, but eachfrontier regionand designated a semi-autonomous government and directed to govern the region, which allowed for a certain degree of free autonomy following the pre-colonial period. However, since the pre-colonial period was divided into several groups led by small chiefs as described above, there was a mixture of people with slightly different languages and cultures within the frontier regions. Therefore, the British, in order to facilitate the monitoring of these areas, single-handedly created about 135 ethnic groups withClassification.The first time, the company was in a position to do so.

Independence: Burma to Myanmar

After the occupation by Japan during World War II from 1942 to 1945, followed by re-occupation by the British, the Burmese government formulated a new constitution in 1948 and gained independence as the Union of Burma. Most of the areas that had been self-governed as frontier regions, such as Shan and Kachin, agreed to become independent as states of the Union of Burma after the Panglong Conference held in 1947 in Panglong, a city in present-day Shan State, where full autonomy and equal distribution of national property were promised. However, in 1962, the government was overthrown in a military coup and the Revolutionary Council led by General Ne Win took power. Ne Win introduced Burmese-style socialism, with Buddhism as its foundation and the aim of nationalizing the entire country's economy, and abolished the federal system in order to exercise direct rule. In reaction to this, armed groups were created in the northern and eastern states to resist.

In 1988, dissatisfied with the socialist dictatorship, a large demonstration demanding democracy broke out. The demonstrations were suppressed by the military, but a coup d'état by a group of military youth later gave rise to a new military regime. Fearing resistance from anti-government armed groups, the junta further strengthened its control over ethnic minority areas. The name Burma, the name of the largest ethnic group in the Union of Burma, was changed from Burma to Myanmar in 1989 in order to better define the rule of the non-Burmese ethnic minorities. The name Myanmar is derived from the English pronunciation of Burma (mranma). in 1990 in response to demonstrations by the people in 1988.Myanmar general electionwere held. Although the NLD led by Aung San Suu Kyi won the election with over 90% of the seats, the government ignored the results and retained power, and military rule continued for the next 20 years.

In 2011, with the election of Thein Sein as president, Myanmar has been working to ease restrictions on foreign intervention in the Myanmar market, promote market liberalization, and liberalize the press.political and economic liberalizationThe establishment of a federal system, however, has been met with reluctance because of the loss of national cohesion. On the other hand, Myanmar has been reluctant to establish a federal system because it would result in a loss of national cohesion, and there is growing opposition from ethnic minority regions that expect the restoration of the federal system. In this issue, we will focus on Kachin, Shan, and Kayin states, where the conflict has been particularly intense.

Kachin State

Kachin State is located in northern Myanmar, bordering on Yunnan Province, China. It has a population of approximately 1.7 million and is mainlyKachin (people)The capital is Myitkyina. The capital is Michna, and the northern part of the state is mountainous and the southern part is plains, with Kachin living mainly in the mountainous areas. It is estimated that about 60% to 90% of the Kachin population is Christian.

Since Kachin State was an agreed upon state at the Panglong Conference of 1947, no armed rebel groups were created at the time of its independence from the British. However, as its autonomy was gradually reduced by the central government, this political organization opposed the government in order to expand its autonomy,KIO (Kachin Independent Organization)The KIO was founded in 1960, and its military arm, the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), in 1961. In 1962, the Burmese government abolished the federal system and adopted Buddhism as the state religion. The KIO has also been involved in military intervention to acquire natural resources such as gold, jade, and tropical timber in Kachin State, and it has been pushing for a political solution to Myanmar's conflict through federalism.eyesIn 1994, some 30 years after the founding of the organization, a cease-fire was negotiated with the Myanmar government, but the conflict continued unabated. The cease-fire was achieved in 1994, some 30 years after the founding of the organization, when the natural resources of Kachin State came under the control of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), the highest decision-making body of Myanmar's military regime, and a certain degree of autonomy was granted.

After the ceasefire agreement between the KIO and the government, while it appeared that a peaceful society was on the way, a request was issued by the government forces (Tatmadaw) in 2009 to convert the KIO into a Border Guard Force (BGF), which the KIO refused to do, and the government forces broke the ceasefire agreement. This led to the June 2011battleIn May 2013, an agreement was reached to calm the conflict, but it has continued to this day. Civilians have also been affected,100,000 peopleThe conflict in Kachin State is a typical example of the central versus local conflict in Myanmar between the KIO and the government forces. The conflict in Kachin State is a typical example of the central versus local conflict in Myanmar between the KIO and government forces.

Soldiers of the Kachin Independence Army (Photo: Allsyon Neville-Morgan / Flickr[)CC BY NC-ND 2.0])

Permanent Peace Program conducted by civil society organizations in Kachin in 2018.surveyAccording to the "Land and Resources" report, most of the IDPs are farmers, and the return of land destroyed in the conflict with government forces is the most important issue, but a negative spiral of conflicts has broken out over the return of the land. In addition, most of this land has been traditionally inherited or illegally purchased, making it difficult to prove land tenure through formal documentation. In this context, the government has been pressuring internally displaced persons in the camps since 2017 to return to their original places of residence. However, clashes between armed groups have not disappeared, and returning to places where there is no guarantee of shelter or food has generated opposition.

Shan State

Located in eastern Myanmar, Shan State is the largest state in Myanmar, bordering on China's Yunnan Province, Thailand, and Laos. The population is about 5.8 million, and the Shan people are the largest ethnic minority group in Myanmar, with an estimated population of over 2 million, and several other ethnic minorities. The state capital is Taunggyi, and most of the area is covered with highlands such as the Shan Hills and the Shan Plateau. Religion is mainly Theravada Buddhism, similar to that of the Burmese.

Shan State, like Kachin State, was to be autonomous as a Burmese state at the Panglong Conference.agreementThe first time the country became independent from the British, it became a self-governing region. After gaining independence from the British, Shan State was self-governed, but in 1950, Kuomintang troops, defeated by the Chinese Communist regime, fled to the mountainous areas of Shan State. The Burmese government dispatched government troops to Shan State under the guise of ensuring Shan State's security. After 1958, several rebel groups, including the Shan State Independence Army (SSIA), emerged to oppose the government forces. The struggle between rebel and government forces continued, but in 1964 the existing rebel groups merged to form the Shan State Army (SSA). The Shan State Army fought to restore and expand Shan State's autonomy. Shan State had another problem. It was.drug traffickingThis is the problem of the When the National Revolutionary Army fled to Shan State, it built a drug-related base in eastern Shan State along the Thai border. This led to an active opium trade in Shan State. Later, narcotics organizations also became armed and became the then players in the conflict.

Settlements in the highlands of Shan State (Photo: Samuri Kangaslampi / Flickr[.CC BY NC-ND 2.0])

In the late 1960s, a new party began to emerge. With Chinese support for the Burmese Communist Party, which was in decline at independence, the Burmese Communist Party invaded northern Shan State and absorbed armed groups based in the state, becoming a powerful rebel force. This was an attempt to expand military power by financing it through narcotics. As a result, the Shan State Army was disbanded in 1976. Subsequently, an insurgency within the Burmese Communist Party in 1989 caused the party to split into the MNDAA (Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army), the NDAA (National Democratic Alliance Army), and other groups. As a result, government forces reached a cease-fire agreement with the MNDAA and other rebel groups in 1989, leading to a period of relative stability during the 1990s and for more than a decade, although there were some conflicts between the groups.

In April 2009, a declaration was issued by the government military command to convert armed groups that had reached a ceasefire agreement into border guards on the government side, and rebel groups came under increased pressure from government forces. Subsequently, the NDAA and other armed groups in northern Shan State decided to team up with the KIO and TNLA (Ta'ang National Liberation Army), which had also rejected the order to convert to security forces in other states. The alliance between these groups and the armed groups in northern Shan State was called the Northern Alliance, which led to fighting with government troops and border guards. This fighting continues to this day, with thousands of people taking refuge inside and outside the country.

Kayin State (formerly Karen State)

Located in southeastern Myanmar and bordering Thailand is the state of Kayin. It has a population of approximately 1.6 million and is home to many ethnic groups, including Karens and Mon. The state capital is Paaan, which is located in a mountainous region.

The streets of Paan, capital of Kayin State (Photo: Remko Tanis / Flickr[)CC BY NC-ND 2.0])

Before Burma's independence, it operated as a political organization called KNA, but around the time of independence, an anti-government armed groupKNU (Karen National Union)The KNU refused to accept autonomy as a Burmese state at the 1947 Panglong Conference. However, the Burmese government tried to bring it in as a Karen state, and a conflict between the KNU and government forces began in 1949. At first, the government forces, supported by armed groups from all over the country, invaded the Karen State, but the state's mountainous terrain made it difficult to fight, and although there were few major battles, conflicts broke out frequently throughout the state. The situation changed dramatically in 1988, when government forces moved to take control of Karen State in order to establish military rule. 1989, in the process of taking control of Karen State, the name of the state was changed to Kayin State by the military regime. Then, in 1994, the KNU lost most of its territory under attack from government forces. As a result, several armed groups separated from the KNU, such as the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA). These armed groups varied in form, with some cooperating with the government and others continuing to oppose it.

In May 2013, a meeting for political unity was held by the five armed groups in Kayin and sought to ease tensions between the groups. The KNU also signed a ceasefire agreement with the government in 2012, and the situation is steadily improving. However, there are large numbers of displaced people in the mountainous areas of the province and in neighboring Thailand.100,000 peopleproblems remain, such as the presence of refugees in the area, and their concern is the presence of numerous armed groups, and it seems difficult for the displaced to return to their former lives unless tensions between the groups and with the government are eliminated.

Myanmar's lower house of parliament (Photo: Htoo Tay Zar / Wikimedia[)CC BY-SA 3.0])

summary

Nationwide, there are parts of the country where it can be said that the general election in 2020 will not be a major change with a resounding victory for the ruling party. So what will happen to Myanmar's many conflicts in the future? Many of the armed groups in areas of ongoing conflict have expanded their influence and military power since the last election, and many of them are influencing the elections.how to look at something (e.g. noh, train schedule)There are also While many citizens in Kachin, Shan, and Kayin states are still demanding basic human rights and autonomy, the situation is not stable as various parties continue to fight over resources and power. The Myanmar government may be using force out of fear that granting autonomy will reduce its influence over minority groups or that it will lead to an uprising, but it is necessary to continue dialogue to resolve the conflict so that citizens can be treated equally and live safely.

Writer: Kaito Seo

Graphics by Yow Shuning

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