Civil war in Burma, theoretical, strategic and general
Websites/Multiple Documents
| Title: | | Amnesty International (Burma/Myanmar page) |
| Description/subject: | | Reports and news on Burma back to 1996. Annual reports to 1997. Best to use printer-friendly versions of reports. |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Amnesty International |
| Format/size: | | html, pdf |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Free Burma Rangers |
| Description/subject: | | "... The Free Burma Rangers is an organization dedicated to freedom for the people of Burma. "De Oppresso Liber" is the motto of the Free Burma Rangers and we are dedicated in faith to the establishment of liberty, justice, equal rights and peace for all the people of Burma. The Free Burma Rangers support the restoration of democracy, ethnic rights and the implementation of the International Declaration of Human Rights in Burma. We stand with those who desire a nation where God's gifts of life, liberty, justice, pursuit of happiness and peace are ensured for all...
MISSION:
The mission of the Free Burma Rangers is to bring help, hope and love to the oppressed people of Burma. Its mission is also to help strengthen civil society, inspire and develop leadership that serves the people and act as a voice for the oppressed...
ACTIONS:
The Free Burma Rangers (FBR), conduct relief, advocacy, leadership development and unity missions among the people of Burma...
Relief: ..."...FBR has issued some of the best documented reports on internal displacement/forced migration |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Free Burma Rangers |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 21 May 2004 |
|
| Title: | | Human Rights Watch Burma page |
| Description/subject: | | Full text online reports from 1989 (events of 1988), though 1991 seems to be missing and 2004 has no section on Burma. |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Human Rights Watch |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Initiative on Conflict Resolution and Ethnicity (INCORE) |
| Description/subject: | | Initiative on Conflict Resolution and Ethnicity ) "is a joint initiative of the University of Ulster and the United Nations University. INCORE aims to address the management and resolution of conflict by a combination of research, training and other activities which inform and influence national and international organisations working in the field of conflict."
Country Guides; Ethnic Conflict Digest; Information Bank;
Peace Agreements;
Thematic Guides;
Library Database. |
| Language: | | English |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Karen Human Rights Group (KHRG) |
| Description/subject: | | The largest body of high-quality reports on the civil war in Burma, especially focussed on the civilian victims. |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | KHRG |
| Format/size: | | html, pdf |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | KNU Web-page |
| Description/subject: | | Aims, statements, history etc. Last updated 1998 |
| Language: | | English |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Shanland |
| Description/subject: | | Contains pages from the Shan Human Rights Foundation, Shan Herald Agency for News, Shan State Army, The Shan Democratic Union. Lots of historical and constitutional docs on the site |
| Language: | | English |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Shanworld |
| Description/subject: | | Website of Shan State Army (South) and associated groups. Large, lively site. Photos, battle reports, political documents, human rights and drug news etc. |
| Language: | | English |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
Individual Documents
| Title: | | To Fight or Not to Fight |
| Date of publication: | | April 2009 |
| Description/subject: | | As the 2010 election approaches, Burma's ethnic armies are becoming restless...
"OVER the past decade, a patchwork of ceasefire agreements, if not actual peace, has reigned over most of Burma's ethnic hinterland. Of the many ethnic insurgent armies that once battled the Burmese regime, only a handful are still waging active military campaigns. The rest remain armed, but have shown little appetite for renewed fighting - so far.
With an election planned for sometime next year, however, the status quo is looking increasingly unsustainable. The junta is pushing its erstwhile adversaries to form parties and field candidates, and while some have unenthusiastically complied, others have begun to chafe at the persistent pressure..." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 17, No. 2 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 02 April 2009 |
|
| Title: | | Burma's Ethnic Jigsaw Puzzle |
| Date of publication: | | October 2008 |
| Description/subject: | | "A new study on ethnic politics in Burma surveys a bewildering field and points the way forward...Whereas Smith's book was about conflict and ethnic identity, and Lintner's about conflict, state building and narcotics, Ashley South explores all these topics and then looks at contemporary debates on development and forced displacement, with a more academic discussion of shifting "identities" in Burma. Given the sheer range and depth of all these issues, South overviews them skillfully.
The purpose of the book is to inject greater complexity and detail into the debates over ethnic politics: the role of resurgent civil society in ethnic ceasefire areas and the cities of Burma; the ethnic groups' constrained participation in the military government's national convention; and the uneven performance of local development projects.
With a timely epilogue taking into account the effects of Cyclone Nargis, South suggests there are now opportunities in Burma for meaningful participation in national politics for Burma's long-suffering and splintered ethnic nationalities if they pursue a considerable strategic rethink -- what South calls "review, reform and re-engage..." |
| Author/creator: | | Review by David Mathieson of Ashley South's "Ethnic Politics in Burma: States of Conflict" |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 16, No. 10 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 14 November 2008 |
|
| Title: | | Myanmar / Burma. Aktuelle Kriege 2006 |
| Date of publication: | | 02 December 2007 |
| Description/subject: | | Das Berichtsjahr in dem weltweit am längsten durchgehend andauernden kriegerischen Konflikt wurde von verschiedenen Nichtregierungsorganisationen als das blutigste seit 1997 bezeichnet. Dabei stellten die beiden größten verbliebenen Rebellengruppen, die Karen National Union (KNU) und die Shan State Army - South (SSA-S) militärisch schon lange keine Bedrohung für den Staat mehr dar. Eine bestehende informelle Waffenruhe zwischen KNU und Militärregierung wurde von letzterer aufgekündigt und sowohl KNU und SSA-S waren verstärkt das Ziel von Angriffen, die vor allem die Zivilbevölkerung in Mitleidenschaft zogen; Ursachen und Verlauf des Konfliktes; Entwicklungen von 1998-2006; roots and history of the conflict; development from 1998 - 2006 |
| Author/creator: | | Cord-Hinrich Wiehemayer |
| Language: | | German, Deutsch |
| Source/publisher: | | Universität Hamburg |
| Format/size: | | Html (28kb) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 08 May 2008 |
|
| Title: | | Nyaunglebin / Toungoo Districts: Re-emergence of Irregular SPDC Army Soldiers and Karen Splinter Groups in Northern Karen State |
| Date of publication: | | 24 October 2005 |
| Description/subject: | | "The situation observed in Nyaunglebin and Toungoo Districts ... of northern Karen State has for many years been highly volatile. Even now, with the existence of the verbal ceasefire between the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) and the Karen National Union (KNU), forced labour and extortion is rife and thousands of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) live in hiding in the forests. The ceasefire has done little to help the lot of the villagers living in these areas. The SPDC has taken advantage of their relative freedoms of movement and activity under the ceasefire agreement, leading to recent developments in these two districts which threaten to make life for the villagers living there even harder.
...
Since its formation in September 1998, the Dam Byan Byaut Kya (‘Guerrilla Retaliation Units’) have terrorised the villagers of first Nyaunglebin and later also Toungoo District, seeking out and punishing any villagers suspected of having contact with the resistance..." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Karen Human Rights Group (KHRG #2005-B6) |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www.khrg.org/khrg2005/khrg05b6.html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 26 October 2005 |
|
| Title: | | A Risky Farewell to Arms |
| Date of publication: | | June 2005 |
| Description/subject: | | "The Burmese junta has succeeded in forging ceasefires with 17 ethnic minority rebel groups since 1989. But now its attempt to disarm them could backfire.
Burma’s military regime seems to have practiced the maxim from Chinese philosopher Sun Tzu’s Art of War: “Supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy’s resistance without fighting.” The junta has used this approach since assuming power in 1988 by reaching ceasefire agreements with 17 ethnic minority armed groups. Since that time, fighting has died down in many areas and the generals probably think they have defeated their ethnic minority enemies—who took up arms against Rangoon after independence from Britain in 1948— without firing a shot.
But maybe that comfortable situation is about to change.
On the surface, it looks like the regime has also brought the groups into the political arena by now including them in the National Convention, which resumed in 2004 after eight years suspension. The NC is supposed to draft a new constitution aimed at resolving the country’s long stalemate among the ruling military, the opposition and ethnic minority groups. In fact, however, they are allowed only a token presence. They cannot take part in open discussions..." |
| Author/creator: | | Kyaw Zwa Moe |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 13, No. 6 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 28 April 2006 |
|
| Title: | | Dying Alive - A Legal Assessment of Human Rights Violations in Burma |
| Date of publication: | | April 2005 |
| Description/subject: | | AN INVESTIGATION AND LEGAL ASSESSMENT OF
HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS INFLICTED IN BURMA,
WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO THE
INTERNALLY DISPLACED, EASTERN PEOPLES..."For over a decade, the United Nations and Human Rights organisations have documented
systematic and widespread human rights violations inflicted on the people of Burma
generally, and on the ethnic people in particular. Most reports, however, with the exception
of some references to Article Three of The Geneva Conventions, have refrained from
conceptualizing the violations in terms of International Humanitarian Law. This report
addresses that gap and, in the aftermath of the State organised ambush of Daw Aung San
Suu Kyi's convoy on May 30, 2003; the ongoing, widespread, systematic destruction of
substantial parts of the eastern ethnic peoples; and the failure to end impunity, recommends
a period of consultation, education and consensus building to explore the practicality,
political appropriateness, and morality of applying and enforcing relevant International
Humanitarian Law. This report analyses the human rights violations, identified by, amongst others, UN Special
Rapporteurs for human rights and Amnesty International, and expressed in UN General
Assembly Resolutions, that have been inflicted on the people of Burma for decades..." NOTE ON FORMAT: There is a glitch in the CD the online version is based on, with lines from the next page creeping onto the current page. This will be fixed eventually. There is also a plan to break the text up into managable chunks. |
| Author/creator: | | Guy Horton |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Guy Horton, Images Asia |
| Format/size: | | pdf (4.7MB) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 May 2006 |
|
| Title: | | The Wounds of War |
| Date of publication: | | April 2005 |
| Description/subject: | | Battered Burma’s unanswered question: when will the fighting end?...
"The horrors of war are all too visible on Myo Myint’s scarred body. The former Burma Army trooper has only one arm and one leg. The fingers of one hand are just stumps, he’s almost blind in one eye and pieces of landmine shrapnel still lodge in his body.
Myo Myint: Crippled and disillusioned by war
Myo Myint is one of countless thousands of men and women maimed for life in Burma’s ongoing civil war, which has been raging for more than half a century—one of Asia’s longest unsolved conflicts..." |
| Author/creator: | | Kyaw Zwa Moe |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 13, No. 4 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 27 April 2006 |
|
| Title: | | 'Peace', or Control? The SPDC’s use of the Karen ceasefire to expand its control and repression of villagers in Toungoo District, Northern Karen State |
| Date of publication: | | 22 March 2005 |
| Description/subject: | | "Under the informal KNU-SPDC ceasefire, the SPDC Army should be scaling down its activities in the hills of Toungoo District, but instead it has increased military operations since December 2004. Using the increased freedom of movement it has gained under the ceasefire, the Army has sent out columns to consolidate control over civilians in the remotest parts of this mountainous district. Using villagers as forced labour to improve military access roads and haul supplies to support remote outposts, the Army is trying to flush out the displaced villagers who have evaded its control thus far. As the Army gains freedom of movement, villagers throughout the District find themselves less free to move, their trade routes, access to food and medicine markets, and even the paths to their fields blocked by SPDC movement restrictions, checkpoints, Army patrols and landmines..." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Karen Human Rightgs Group (KHRG #2005-F3) |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 23 May 2005 |
|
| Title: | | A CONFLICT OF INTERESTS: The uncertain future of Burma’s forests |
| Date of publication: | | October 2003 |
| Description/subject: | | A Briefing Document by Global Witness. October 2003...
Table of Contents... Recommendations...
Introduction...
Summary:
Natural Resources and Conflict in Burma;
SLORC/SPDC-controlled logging;
China-Burma relations and logging in Kachin State;
Thailand-Burma relations and logging in Karen State...
Part One: Background:
The Roots of Conflict;
Strategic location, topography and natural resources;
The Peoples of Burma;
Ethnic diversity and politics;
British Colonial Rule...
Independence and the Perpetuation of Conflict:
Conflict following Independence and rise of Ne Win;
Burma under the Burma Socialist Programme Party (BSPP);
The Four Cuts counter – insurgency campaign;
The 1988 uprising and the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC); The 1990 General Election and the drafting of a new Constitution;
Recent Developments:
The Detention of Aung San Suu Kyi...
The Administration of Burma: Where Power Lies:
The State Peace and Development Council (SPDC);
The Cabinet;
The Three Generals;
The Tatmadaw;
Regional Commanders...
Part Two: Logging in Burma:-
The Economy:
The importance of the timber trade;
Involvement of the Army;
Bartering;
Burma’s Forests;
Forest cover, deforestation rates and forest degradation...
The Timber Industry in Burma:
The Administration of forestry in Burma;
Forest Management in Burma, the theory;
The Reality of the SPDC-Controlled Timber Trade...
Law enforcement:
The decline of the Burma Selection System and Institutional Problems;
Import – Export Figures;
SPDC-controlled logging in Central Burma;
The Pegu Yomas;
The illegal timber trade in Rangoon;
SLORC/SPDC control over logging in ceasefire areas...
Ceasefires:
Chart of armed ethnic groups. April 2002;
Ceasefire groups;
How the SLORC/SPDC has used the ceasefires: business and development...
Conflict Timber:
Logging and the Tatmadaw;
Logging as a driver of conflict;
Logging companies and conflict on the Thai-Burma border;
Controlling ceasefire groups through logging deals...
Forced Labour:
Forced labour logging...
Opium and Logging:
Logging and Opium in Kachin State;
Logging and Opium in Wa...
Conflict on the border:
Conflict on the border;
Thai-Burmese relations and ‘Resource Diplomacy’;
Thais prioritise logging interests over support for ethnic insurgents;
The timber business and conflict on the Thai-Burma border;
Thai Logging in Karen National Union territory;
The end of SLORC logging concessions on the Thai border;
The Salween Scandal in Thailand;
Recent Logging on the Thai-Burma border...
Karen State:
The Nature of Conflict in Karen State;
The Karen National Union (KNU);
The Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA);
Logging in Karen State;
Logging and Landmines in Karen State;
Charcoal Making in Nyaunglebin District...
The China-Burma Border:
Chinese-Burmese Relations;
Chinese-Burmese relations and Natural Resource Colonialism;
The impact of logging in China;
The impact of China’s logging ban;
The timber trade on the Chinese side of the border...
Kachin State:
The Nature of Conflict in Kachin State;
The Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO);
Jade and the KIA’s insurgent Economy;
Dabak and Mali Hydroelectric Power Projects;
The New Democratic Army (Kachin) (NDA(K));
The Kachin Defence Army (KDA);
How the ceasefires have affected insurgent groups in Kachin State; HIV/AIDS and Extractive Industries in Kachin State ;
Logging in Kachin State;
Gold Mining in Kachin State;
The N’Mai Hku (Headwaters) Project;
Road Building in Kachin State...
Wa State:
Logging in Wa State;
Timber Exports through Wa State;
Road building in Wa State;
Plantations in Wa State...
Conclusion...
Appendix I: Forest Policies, Laws and Regulations;
National Policy, Laws and Regulations;
National Commission on Environmental Affairs;
Environmental policy;
Forest Policy;
Community Forestry;
International Environmental Commitments...
Appendix II: Forest Law Enforcement and Governance (FLEG):
Ministerial Declaration...
References. [the pdf version contains the text plus maps, photos etc. The Word version contains text and tables only] |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Global Witness |
| Format/size: | | Word (719K) 166 pages, pdf (4 files: 1.8MB, 1.4MB, 2.0MB, 2.1MB) 126 pages |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www.globalwitness.org |
| Date of entry/update: | | 16 October 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Uncounted: political prisoners in burma’s ethnic areas |
| Date of publication: | | August 2003 |
| Description/subject: | | Contents:
1. Executive Summary;
2. Introduction;
2a. Scope of report;
3. Background;
4. Definitions and Regulations;
4a. What is a political prisoner?;
4b. International and domestic regulations governing
treatment;
4c. Conflict zones;
4d. Cease-fire and “Pacified Areasâ€;
4e. Support and perceived support for armed groups;
5. Politically Motivated Detentions in the Conflict Zones;
5a. Accusations;
5b. Places of detention;
5c. Were charges laid?;
6. Treatment of Detainees and Outcomes of Detention;
6a. Arbitrary detention;
6b. Torture;
6c. Extrajudicial killings;
6d. Disappearances;
7. Political Motivations Behind Detentions;
7a. Weakening/destruction of the People’s Movement;
7b. Power and absolute control;
7c. Eradication of armed forces;
7d. Other motivations;
7e. Secondary Effects;
8. Inclusion in Existing Reporting;
9. The Bigger Picture;
10. Conclusion;
11. Recommendations...
12. Appendixes:
a. Summary of cases;
b. Ethnic Armed and political groups;
c. Relevant international laws and regulations;
13. Glossary;
Map of Burma;
Map of Locations of Detention...
Executive Summary:
In Mr Paulo Sergio Pinheiro’s report to the 59th Commission on Human Rights
he stated,
“Political arrests since July 2002 have followed the pattern of un-rule of law,
including arbitrary arrest, prolonged incommunicado detention and interrogation by
military intelligence personnel, extraction of confessions of guilt or of information,
very often under duress or torture, followed by summary trials, sentencing and
imprisonment.â€
This report presents a sample of 46 cases that comply with the description
in Pinheiro’s statement but remain unrecognised as political arrests. They are
people mostly in Burma’s ethnic areas detained on accusations of supporting
non-Burman ethnic nationality opposition groups. The accusations range from
offering support through food and accommodation, to knowledge of
opposition group movements, to actually being a member of a non-Burman ethnic nationality opposition group..." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "Burma Issues", Altsean-Burma |
| Format/size: | | pdf (796K) 82 pages |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www.burmaissues.org/En/reports/uncounted.pdf |
| Date of entry/update: | | 21 September 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Expansion of the Guerrilla Retaliation Units and Food Shortages |
| Date of publication: | | 16 June 2003 |
| Description/subject: | | KHRG Information Update #2003-U1
June 16, 2003
"The situation faced by the villagers of Toungoo District (see Map 1) is worsening as more and more parts of the District are being brought under the control of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) through the increased militarisation of the region. At any one time there are no fewer than a dozen battalions active in the area. Widespread forced labour and extortion continue unabated as in previous years, with all battalions in the District being party to such practices. The imposition of constant forced labour and the extortion of money and food are among the military’s primary occupations in the area. The strategy of the military is not one of open confrontation with the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) – the armed wing of the Karen National Union (KNU) - but of targeting the civilian population as a means of cutting all lines of support and supply for the resistance movement. There has not been a major offensive in the District since the SPDC launched Operation Aung Tha Pyay in 1995-96; however since that time the Army has been restricting, harassing, and forcibly relocating hill villages to the point where people can no longer live in them. Many of the battalions launch sweeps through the hills in search of villagers hiding there in an effort to drive them out of the hills and into the areas controlled by the SPDC. Fortunately, the areas into which many of them have fled are both rugged and remote, making it difficult for the Army to find them. For those who are discovered, once relocated, they are then exploited as a ready source for portering and other forced labour..." |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Karen Human Rights Group (KHRG) |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 01 July 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Zum Verständnis ethnischer und politischer Konflikte in Burma / Myanmar |
| Date of publication: | | May 2003 |
| Description/subject: | | Der Artikel beschreibt die historische Entstehung ethnischer Konflikte seit der Kolonialzeit sowie die Instrumentalisierung der ethnsichen Zugehörigkeit unter dem Militär; historical development of ethnic conflicts; instrumentalisation of ethnicity |
| Author/creator: | | Hingst, René |
| Language: | | German, Deutsch |
| Source/publisher: | | Heinrich Böll Stiftung |
| Date of entry/update: | | 19 December 2007 |
|
| Title: | | War, History and Identity (a review of Ashley South's "The Golden Sheldrake") |
| Date of publication: | | April 2003 |
| Description/subject: | | "A new book on the Mon ethnic group makes a much-needed contribution to the study of Mon history and sheds light on some of the complexities of Burma’s ethnic conflicts...
Although ethnic conflict is a key issue in modern Burmese politics, few writers and researchers seem to have covered the topic in detail. Ashley South’s latest book, Mon Nationalism and Civil War in Burma: The Goldensheldrake (Routledge Curzon, 2002), is perhaps the first comprehensive study of Mon history and offers a timely contribution to the issue of Burma’s ongoing ethnic conflicts...
South’s detailed and authoritative book is a must for all interested in Mon history and ethnic minority politics, and for those curious about the dynamics of the civil war and conflict that has raged in Burma for more than 50 years..." |
| Author/creator: | | Tom Kramer |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "The Irrawaddy" Vol. 11, No. 3 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | May 2003 |
|
| Title: | | GLOBAL COMMUNICATIONS, LOCAL CONCEPTIONS: HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE POLITICS OF COMMUNICATION AMONG THE BURMESE OPPOSITION-IN-EXILE |
| Date of publication: | | March 2003 |
| Description/subject: | | A Dissertation Presented to
The Faculty of the College of Communication of
Ohio University
In Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree
Doctor of Philosophy
by
Lisa B. Brooten
March 2003...
"...This study examines the impact of new information technologies (NITs) on the
Burmese opposition movement-in-exile based in Thailand. The intent of the research is
to determine whether NITs, primarily computers and the Internet, are helping to reduce,
maintain, or intensify ethnic conflict within the movement. The study explores
implications for political mobilization by examining what groups within the movement
have access to which technologies, and how these groups understand and use global
media and the discourses they produce. The research is a multi-sited ethnography
conceived within the epistemological framework of standpoint theory, providing an
empirically grounded exploration of the Burmese opposition movement in both its local
and global contexts. It employs participant observation, in-depth interviews and
discourse analysis to examine the impact of global communications at the local level.
The work begins with an historical examination of the development of the modern state
in Burma, which provides the context for exploring how militarization, gender and
ethnicity have affected the development of nationalisms and conflict defined largely as
"ethnic" in nature. This is followed by a discussion of how the history and current state
of communications both inside and outside Burma constrain attitudes toward the possible
uses of communications technologies and media among the opposition-in-exile. An
overview of opposition media investigates the degree to which these media have opened a space for dialogue between groups. Interviews with opposition activists and refugees
from Burma demonstrate how the Burmese regime's militaristic values are both
perpetuated and countered within the opposition movement itself. The research finds that
the introduction of NITs and patterns of foreign funding have reinforced existing
hierarchies within the opposition movement. Finally, this study demonstrates how the
"local" reinvents the "global" through the use of a global discourse of human rights
which acts subtly but powerfully to shape social conventions within the movement. This
results in an unstated hierarchy of human rights that perpetuates the inequitable gender
and ethnic composition of the opposition political groups and the hierarchy of access and
use of technologies among these groups." |
| Author/creator: | | Lisa B. Brooten |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Lisa B. Brooten (Ohio University thesis) |
| Format/size: | | pdf (2.2MB) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 10 August 2005 |
|
| Title: | | Myanmar: Lack of Security in Counter-Insurgency Areas |
| Date of publication: | | 17 July 2002 |
| Description/subject: | | "...In February and March 2002 Amnesty International interviewed some 100 migrants from
Myanmar at seven different locations in Thailand. They were from a variety of ethnic groups,
including the Shan; Lahu; Palaung; Akha; Mon; Po and Sgaw Karen; Rakhine; and Tavoyan
ethnic minorities, and the majority Bamar (Burman) group. They originally came from the Mon,
Kayin, Shan, and Rakhine States, and Bago, Yangon and Tanintharyi Divisions.(1) What follows
below is a summary of human rights violations in some parts of eastern Myanmar during the last
18 months which migrants reported to Amnesty International. One section of the report also
examines several cases of abuses of civilians by armed opposition groups fighting against the
Myanmar military. Finally, this document describes various aspects of a Burmese migrant
worker's life in Thailand..." ADDITIONAL KEYWORDS: forced labour, refugees, land confiscation, forced
relocation, forced removal, forced resettlement, forced displacement, internal displacement, IDP, extortion, torture,
extrajudicial killings, forced conscription, child soldiers, porters, forced portering, house
destruction, eviction, Shan State, Wa, USWA, Wa resettlement, Tenasserim, abuses by armed opposition
groups. |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Amnesty International |
| Format/size: | | PDF version (126K) 48pg |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://web.amnesty.org/aidoc/aidoc_pdf.nsf/index/ASA160072002ENGLISH/$File/ASA1600702.pdf
http://www.burmainfo.org/AI/ASA160072002_jp.html (Japanese, excerpt) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | A strategy of subjugation: The Situation in Ler Mu Lah Township, Tenasserim Division |
| Date of publication: | | 21 December 2001 |
| Description/subject: | | "This report aims to provide an update on the situation in Tenasserim Division, Burma’s southernmost region. It is based primarily on interviews from Ler Mu Lah township in central Tenasserim Division, but also gives an overview of some background and developments in other parts of the Division. At the end of the report two maps are included: Map 1 showing the entire Division, and Map 2 showing the northern part of Tenasserim Division and the southern part of Karen State’s Dooplaya District. Many of the villages mentioned in the report and the interviews can be found on Map 1, while Map 2 includes some of the sites mentioned in relation to flows of refugees and their forced repatriation..."
An update on the situation in central Tenasserim Division since the Burmese junta's mass offensive to
capture the area in 1997. Unable to gain complete control of the region because of the rugged
jungle, harassment by resistance forces and the staunch non-cooperation of the villagers, the SPDC
regime has gradually flooded the area with 36 Battalions which have forced many villages into
relocation sites where the villagers are used as forced labour to push more military roads into
remote areas. Thousands continue to hide in the forests despite being hunted and having their
food supplies destroyed by SPDC patrols. They have little choice, though, because if they flee to
the Thai border they encounter the Thai Army 9th Division, which continues to force refugees back
into Burma at gunpoint." Additional keywords: Tanintharyi, Burman, Mon, Karen, Tayoyan, road building, free-fire zones, destruction of villages, resistance groups, extortions, internal displacement, refoulement, forced repatriation, killing, torture, shooting, restrictions on movement, beating to death, shortage of food, 9th Division (Thai Army). ADDITIONAL KEYWORDS: forced resettlement, forced relocation, forced movement, forced displacement, forced migration, forced to move. |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Karen Human Rights Group Regional & Thematic Reports (KHRG #2001-04) |
| Format/size: | | html, pdf (1.2 MB) |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www.khrg.org/khrg2001/khrg0104.html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Burma: Protracted Conflict, Governance and Non-Traditional Security Issues |
| Date of publication: | | May 2001 |
| Description/subject: | | ABSTRACT:
"Of all countries in Southeast Asia, Burma has the unenviable reputation of having the largest number of armed ethnic insurgencies, as well as an entrenched civil opposition to the ruling military regime. The ethnic insurgencies began in 1948 while civil opposition has grown more open during the last decade. These conditions of protracted conflict raise a number of related questions: (1) Why has the conflict been so persistent and how is this related to “governance” in Burma? (2) Is it possible to distinguish non-traditional security issues in this conflict and, if so, what are the implications in relation to regional co-operation and stability? This paper seeks to address these questions through an examination of developments in Burma since 1988, a watershed year in domestic politico-military relations. It also seeks to establish a clear delineation of “governance” as an analytical concept and to set out non-traditional security issues arising from the conflict in Burma. The non-traditional security issues arise principally from the existence of approximately 120,000 refugees in Thailand, cross-border violations of Thailand’s territorial sovereignty, and the massive influx of narcotics from Burma into Thailand and China. These issues are situated in relation to developments in Burma and proximate inter-state interactions. Finally, the paper examines the implications of these issues in the broader context of regional co-operation and stability, and undertakes a re-assessment of the relationship between non-traditional security issues and traditional (politico-military) issues." |
| Author/creator: | | Ananda Rajah |
| Source/publisher: | | Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies Singapore (Working Paper 14) |
| Format/size: | | pdf (430K) 32 pages |
| Date of entry/update: | | 28 February 2009 |
|
| Title: | | Bewaffneter Konflikt in Myanmar (Birma) Berichtsjahr 2000 |
| Date of publication: | | 2001 |
| Description/subject: | | Bericht zu den mehr als fünfzig Jahre andauernden bewaffneten Konflikten in Myanmar/Birma für das Jahr 2000. Trotz eines allgemeinen Rückgangs der Kriegshandlungen, haben sich die Kämpfe im Jahr 2000 fortgesetzt. Die Autorin geht sowohl auf die Kinderarmee "God's Army" als auch die KNU ein. Mit Links zu weiteren Quellen. |
| Author/creator: | | Franziska Stock |
| Language: | | Deutsch, German |
| Source/publisher: | | Forschungsstelle Kriege, Rüstung und Entwicklung, AG Kriegsursachenforschung, Institut für Politische Wissenschaft der Universität Hamburg |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Ghost Dancing in the Darkest Hour |
| Date of publication: | | 31 October 2000 |
| Description/subject: | | "...Ethnic cleansing has been carried out in much of the Shan and Karenni states. Since 1989 the AIDS virus has spread and the junta is still in denial about it. In the past ten years, new drug routes, heroin refineries, shooting galleries, and amphetamine production have penetrated the mountains. Forced labor is the norm throughout Burma, not only for army portering, but now formilitary profiteering schemes such as logging and mining as well..." |
| Author/creator: | | Edith Mirante |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "Cultural Survival Quarterly" Issue 24.3 |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Alternate URLs: | | http://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/csq/csq_article.cfm?id=0A8CAA8D-560F-44B5-8080-CFD8CB6... |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
| Title: | | Ethnicity and Civil War in Burma: Where is the Rationality? |
| Date of publication: | | 1998 |
| Description/subject: | | Ananda Rajah's chapter (minus a page of footnotes) in "Burma: Prospects for a Democratic Future" (Robert Rotberg (ed). Section headings are: "An Absence of Rationality?", "The Shan and Factionalism", "The Karen and Federalism", "Substantive and Formal Rationality", "Conclusion". |
| Author/creator: | | Ananda Rajah |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | "Burma: Prospects for a Democratic Future" (Robert Rotberg (ed) via Google Books |
| Format/size: | | pdf |
| Date of entry/update: | | 28 February 2009 |
|
| Title: | | Ethnic Groups in Burma: Development, Democracy and Human Rights |
| Date of publication: | | November 1994 |
| Description/subject: | | "...For a generation Burma languished behind closed doors. Then suddenly, in
the summer of 1988, the doors burst open as angry protests were violently
put down by the security forces and the chilling scenes made headline
news around the world. 'In-depth pieces' reported on the political and civil
repression that had been going on for years. But there was little
examination then, and there has been little since, of the targeted repression
which had been going on, and is continuing, against whole groups of
people - Burma's ethnic minority groups.
Burma is a country of proud cultural and historic traditions, and it is rich
in natural resources. But nearly half a century of conflict has left Burma
with a legacy of deep-rooted problems and weakened its ability to cope
with a growing host of new ones: economic and social collapse; hundreds
of thousands of refugees and displaced people; environmental
degradation; narcotics; and AIDS. These problems touch on the lives of all
Burmese citizens. But it is members of ethnic minority groups who have
suffered the most, and who have had even less say over their lives and the
destiny of their peoples than the majority 'Burmans'. Many minorities
claim that a policy of 'Burmanisation' is manifest. Amidst the upheavals,
gross human rights abuses have been committed, including the
conscription, over the years, of millions into compulsory labour duties, the
ill-treatment or extrajudicial executions of ethnic minority villagers in
war-zones, and the forcible relocation of entire communities..." |
| Author/creator: | | Martin Smith |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Anti-Slavery International |
| Format/size: | | pdf (1.1MB) |
| Date of entry/update: | | 18 November 2005 |
|
| Title: | | The Hunting of the SLORC |
| Date of publication: | | June 1993 |
| Description/subject: | | "The Chinese sage Sun Tsu says in The Art of War that "The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting". In its conduct of the civil war SLORC (State Law and Order Restoration Council, the martial law administration ruling Burma), is currently using Low Intensity Conflict strategies which avoid major military confrontation, but are designed to force a "political" (read "politico-military") settlement on the ethnic opposition and divide them from the political opposition. These strategies are closely tied to SLORC's attempts to acquire constitutional "legitimacy" by means of a National Convention, and are aided by the pressure which Burma's neighbors are putting on the non-burman ethnic groups to sign cease-fires. But no lasting solution to the country's problems will be achieved until the three main actors -- the military, the political opposition and the ethnic opposition -- meet on a basis of equality and with a strong political will to achieve national reconciliation and the restoration of democracy. The politico-military devices described in this paper must therefore be seen as measures by SLORC to retain power, reverse international criticism, especially at the UN General Assembly and the Commission on Human Rights, and attract foreign investment and development assistance..." |
| Author/creator: | | David Arnott |
| Language: | | English |
| Source/publisher: | | Burma Peace Foundation |
| Format/size: | | html |
| Date of entry/update: | | 03 June 2003 |
|
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