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  • Essay / Roles of the Kachin Baptist Church in the IDP Crisis in Myanmar's Northern Shan State

    Myanmar is one of the most ethnically diverse ethnic groups and is full of national resources that are the key drivers of complexity and conflict in the country. According to the 2008 constitution, seven ethnic minority states were demarcated: Chin, Kachin, Karen, Kayah, Mon, Rakhine, Shan and seven divisions, which are largely inhabited by Myanmar's majority population. Multiple conflicts arise in these ethnic minority states due to power sharing and mistrust. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay. Moreover, the same problem between majorities and minorities created the greed and grievances that were entrenched since the Panlong Agreement of 1947, the important Myanmar-Myanmar dialogue. ethnic groups for internal peace and independence. Among the ethnic conflicts in Myanmar, the Kachin conflict remains unresolved and hampers the peace process. The armed conflict between the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and the Myanmar army broke out sixty years ago. In 2014, fighting between two armies left thousands injured and dead and more than 100,000 people internally displaced. Additionally, two cases of sexual violence against two young Kachin teachers that occurred on January 19, 2015 escalated the conflict as Kachin called for action from the Myanmar military, but no acceptable action has been taken yet. Recently, fighting has taken place between the KIA and the Myanmar military in Shan and Kachin states. The first peace dialogue was stalled in 1997 due to distrust between majority and minority groups and fighting resumed in 2011. Currently, Myanmar has resumed the peace process, but it still had to sign a ceasefire agreement with KIA. Therefore, it is important to study the entrenched issues between the Kachin and the majority of Myanmar. The Kachin live mainly in the northern part of Myanmar, bordering China, and the other large Kachin populations are in northern Shan State. They speak a dozen distinct languages ​​belonging to the “Tibeto-Burman linguistic family” and are largely devoted to Christianity (Ekeh, 2007, pp.4). Kachin State is rich in “economic potential – forests, jade, gold and other natural resources, but has suffered greatly from more than three decades of conflict” (Smith, 2010, p. 16). In 1961, the “Kachin Independent Organization (KIO)” was established based on the demand for secession rights, and then the Kachin State became one of the major ethnic armed conflicts in the country (Smith, 2010, p 16). The first ceasefire agreement was signed in 1994, recognizing non-ceasefire armed groups as domestic offenders in border areas (Holliday, 2013, p. 97). As Kachin State gradually expanded after the ceasefire agreement, "Chinese investment megaprojects such as the Myitsone Dam and jade mining projects" have become a social threat and environmental protection for Kachin country and aroused animosity among the Kachin public (The Irrawaddy). , June 9, 2015). According to Irrawaddy News, tensions between the KIA and the government arose after the 2010 government order to transform itself into a border guard force under the central command of the government army. On June 9, 2011, a violent attack between two forces broke out and more than “100,000 civilians, mostly from the Kachin, Shan and Lisu ethnic groups, were displaced in the months following the outbreak of the conflict” (Irrawaddy, 2015; Holliday, 2013,pp.96). The climax of this armed conflict occurred between late 2012 and early 2013 with the surprise attack by the Myanmar Air Force on Kachin armed groups and civil conflict also broke out in the northern Shan State, where the Kachin population resides (Holliday, 2013, pp. .96). In the meantime, the government has resumed peace dialogue with ethnic armed groups, but ongoing fighting, particularly with Kachin armed groups, has intensified conflicts and made it impossible to reach a ceasefire agreement. .According to an interview with Gum San Nsang, president of the Kachin Alliance, a network of Kachin communities and organizations that defend the rights of the Kachin ethnic group, political compromise was not reached and the ceasefire was was impossible due to the aviation of government troops. strikes by 23 Kachin cadets on November 19, 2014, the upcoming celebration of Kachin Union Day (Wagley, 2015, pp.2). Furthermore, cases of sexual violence against two young Kachin teachers that occurred on January 19, 2015 have escalated the conflict as the Kachins have called for action by the Myanmar military, but no acceptable action has yet taken place (Irrawaddy , January 20, 2015). As a result, distrust, hatred and animosity among the Kachin population are increasing. "Seven ethnic armed groups" and the government agreed to sign the "National Ceasefire Agreement (NCA)" on October 15, 2015, although the "other eight groups" Kachin Independence Army ( KIA), notably, abstained from participating in the initial agreement (Channel Newsasia, 2015). “The holdouts say the continued exclusion of three groups engaged in ongoing conflict with the government – ​​the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) ) and the Arakan Army – is the main reason for their abstention” (Kha and Nyein, October 5, 2015). It is the result of two years of negotiations between the government and ethnic groups, but challenges remain in reaching a genuine peace agreement with all ethnic groups, including the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) - who “refuses to sign the agreement and [is] still engaged in clashes with government troops” (Parameswaran, 2015). Regarding the recent exclusive interview between the Irrrawaddy and General Gun Maw of the KIA, General Gun Maw said that "we share the same objective: the introduction of federalism and call for all inclusions, but we do not have any seen none yet” (Kha and Neyin, 2015). . Furthermore, he mentioned that “the clashes have become more intense. If the government fights us because we do not sign the National Ceasefire Agreement (NCA), we have no choice but to defend ourselves. » It took more than six decades for the dispute (disagreement) to be resolved between the two sides, but it cannot get rid of this cycle of conflicts. Ensuring a lasting and inclusive peace will take time and will not be easy depending on detailed negotiations on “separation of forces, a monitoring and verification mechanism and dialogue on political issues” (International Crisis Group, 2013, p. 2). Without further progress, the stability and development of Kachin State is not guaranteed and a resumption of armed conflicts between the Kachins and the government is possible. Additionally, the 2015 general elections will take place on November 8 and voting arrangements in conflict-affected areas are facing challenges due to ongoing fighting, particularly between the government army and Kachin armed groups. Therefore, the peace process in Myanmar is important not only for nation-building, but also for the future of the country itself. It is therefore important to analyzethe underlying cause (disunity and distrust) of the conflict, particularly between the Kachin and the (dominantly Burmese) government. Disunity and distrust between majority and minorities Myanmar was colonized by the British Empire from “1885 to 1948” (Steinberg). , 2010, p. 27). Under British occupation, Myanmar (Burma) was practiced under a policy of "divide and rule" and governed as two distinct territories: "Ministerial Burma", where the majority of Burmese/Myanmars predominated, and the "border areas" , where most Burmese/Myanmars predominated. ethnic groups/hill dwellers lived (Smith, 2002, pp.6). U Ba Swe, Burmese Prime Minister in the 1950s, said the British introduced Christianity and outside cultures to the hill populations “in order to separate them culturally from the Burmese” (Smith, 2002, p. 7). The British directed different contexts of political and economic development between two territories and imposed ethnic disunity and distrust between majority and minority. After the war, many ethnic groups, including the "Kachin", demanded separation from the Union. In other words, ethnic minorities, notably the Kachin, Chin and Shan, were competing for independence for their own territory. Initially, the British also planned to grant independence in two stages to Ministerial Burma and the border areas. In a report by Smith (2002), General Aung San, the founding father of Myanmar's independence, worked to restore "intercommunal relations" among minority citizens and collected the sentiments of the Kachin, Chin and Shan during the “Panglong Conference in 2002”. February 1947 for full autonomy in internal administration and the enjoyment of democratic rights and privileges for all ethnic groups” (p. 7). After independence in 1948, the “Communist Party of Burma (CPB) launched an insurgency against the central government” as the result of a disagreement over power sharing (Raw, 2004, pp.67). Some ethnic minorities took up arms alongside the CPB for “minority rights and local sovereignty due to the development gap, unequal distribution of wealth and power, inadequate communications and infrastructure” (Raw, 2004, pp. 67). According to Seng Raw, “ethnic rights and justice” arose from political struggle and developed into distrust and grievances between the majority and minorities (pp. 68). In an article by Guan (2007), the different perceptions of minorities and the majority are never indicated. Myanmar believes that the disunity is due to the following factors: the lack of national unity and solidarity resulting from the British divide and rule policy; the assassination of General Aung San, who gained the full trust and support of ethnic citizens; the responsibility of the Myanmar armed forces to combat insurgents in order to prevent and protect the territorial integrity of the country; the official name changed from “Burma” given by the British colony to “Myanmar” designating all ethnic groups collectively (Guan, 2007, pp. 124-125). On the other hand, ethnic minorities have different views. They believed that “the 1947 Union Constitution” did not reflect “the spirit of the Panglong Agreement” (Guan, 2007, p. 125). At the Panglong Conference, General Aung San convinced ethnic leaders, including the Kachin, Chin and Shan leaders, to work for the prosperity of the union by sharing resources, manpower, wealth and SKILLS. Furthermore, he firmly declared that "if we are divided, all national races, each pulling in a different direction, the Union will be,.67).