Contents

1 Karen people 11.1 Origins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.2 Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21.3 Population . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31.4 Political history . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

1.4.1 British period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31.4.2 World War II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41.4.3 Post-war . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41.4.4 Karen National Union . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41.4.5 Insurgency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51.4.6 Democratic Karen Buddhist Army . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

1.5 Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51.6 Religion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

1.6.1 Animism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61.6.2 Buddhism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61.6.3 Christianity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

1.7 Karen Flag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61.8 Kawthoolei . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71.9 See also . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71.10 Footnotes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71.11 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

1.11.1 Print . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91.11.2 Online . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

1.12 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

2 Democratic Karen Buddhist Army 112.1 1990s and 2000s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112.2 2010s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112.3 DKBA 5 Faction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112.4 See also . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122.5 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122.6 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

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3 God’s Army (revolutionary group) 133.1 Formation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133.2 Activity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133.3 Surrender and disbandment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133.4 See also . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133.5 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

4 Kantarawadi 154.1 History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

4.1.1 Rulers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164.2 See also . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164.3 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

5 The Karen Hilltribes Trust 175.1 History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175.2 Collaborating charities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175.3 Media links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175.4 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175.5 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

6 Karen National Liberation Army 186.1 History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186.2 Recent history . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186.3 Events in 2010 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196.4 Foreigners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196.5 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196.6 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

7 Karen National Union 207.1 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207.2 Leadership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217.3 Direction (2012) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217.4 Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

7.4.1 1974 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217.4.2 1995 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217.4.3 2000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217.4.4 2005 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217.4.5 2008 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217.4.6 2009 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217.4.7 2010 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217.4.8 2012 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217.4.9 2013 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

7.5 See also . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

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7.6 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227.7 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

8 Karen of the Andamans 238.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

9 Karenni Army 249.1 Karenni State and its short history . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249.2 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249.3 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

10 Karenni States 2610.1 History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

10.1.1 British rule in Burma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2610.1.2 Post-independence Burma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

10.2 States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2710.2.1 Western Karenni . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2710.2.2 Kantarawadi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

10.3 See also . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2710.4 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2710.5 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

11 Kawthoolei 2811.1 See also . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2911.2 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

12 Kayan people (Burma) 3012.1 Geography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

12.1.1 Present settlement of the Kayans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3112.2 Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

12.2.1 Brass coils . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3112.2.2 Traditional religion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3212.2.3 Current religious practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

12.3 See also . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3212.4 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3312.5 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

13 Pa-O National Organization 3413.1 See also . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3413.2 Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3413.3 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

14 Red Karen 3514.1 Karen-Ni . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

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14.2 Karenni States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3514.3 Images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3514.4 Kayah Traditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3514.5 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3514.6 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

15 S'gaw people 3715.1 Classification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3715.2 Geographic distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3715.3 Religion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

16 Western Karenni 3816.1 History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3816.2 States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

16.2.1 Kyebogyi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3816.2.2 Bawlake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3816.2.3 Naungpale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3816.2.4 Nammekon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

16.3 See also . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3916.4 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

17 Saw Ba U Gyi 4017.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

18 Louisa Benson Craig 4118.1 Family . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4118.2 In Perpetuity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4118.3 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

19 Smith Dun 4219.1 See also . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4219.2 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

20 Johnny and Luther Htoo 4320.1 Formation of God’s Army (1997) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4320.2 Worldwide attention (1999-2000) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4320.3 Surrender and life after God’s Army (2001- ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4320.4 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4420.5 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

21 Ka Hsaw Wa 4521.1 Biography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4521.2 Awards and recognition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4521.3 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

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21.4 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

22 Pascal Khoo Thwe 4722.1 Biography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4722.2 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4722.3 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

23 Cynthia Maung 4823.1 Early life and education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4823.2 Medical career . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

23.2.1 Mae Tao Clinic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4923.3 Health services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4923.4 Awards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4923.5 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5023.6 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5023.7 About Mae Tao Clinic and Dr. Cynthia Maung . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5023.8 Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

24 Bo Mya 5224.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

25 Nant Bwa Bwa Phan 5325.1 Footnotes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

26 Bo Nat Khann Mway 5426.1 A quote . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5426.2 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5426.3 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

27 Zoya Phan 5527.1 Biography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

27.1.1 Early life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5527.1.2 Bangkok University . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

27.2 Political activism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5627.2.1 Little Daughter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

27.3 Personal life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5727.4 Awards and recognition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5727.5 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5727.6 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

28 San C. Po 5928.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5928.2 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

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29 Saw Bwe Hmu 6029.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

30 Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan 6130.1 Early life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6130.2 Activism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6130.3 Personal life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6130.4 Assassination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6130.5 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6130.6 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

31 Tha Byu 6331.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6331.2 Further reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

32 David Tharckabaw 6432.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6432.2 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

33 Win Maung 6533.1 Biography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6533.2 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6533.3 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

34 Naw Zipporah Sein 6634.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6634.2 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

35 Karen languages 6735.1 Classification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

35.1.1 Manson (2011) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6735.1.2 Shintani (2012) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

35.2 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6835.3 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

36 Bwe Karen language 6936.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

37 Eastern Pwo language 7037.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

38 Geba Karen language 7138.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

39 Geko Karen 72

CONTENTS vii

39.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

40 Kayaw language 7340.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

41 Lahta language 7441.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

42 Northern Pwo language 7542.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

43 Pa'O language 7643.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

44 Padaung language 7744.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

45 Phrae Pwo language 7845.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

46 Pwo Karen languages 7946.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

47 Red Karen language 8047.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8047.2 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

48 S'gaw Karen language 8148.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8148.2 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

49 Western Pwo language 8249.1 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8249.2 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

49.2.1 Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8349.2.2 Images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8549.2.3 Content license . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

Chapter 1

Karen people

Karen state in Burma

TheKaren,Kayin,Kariang or Yang people (Per PloanPoe or Ploan in Poe Karen and Pwa Ka Nyaw or Kanyawin SgawKaren; , pronounced: [kəjɪɴ̀ lù mjó]; Thai:กะเหร่ียง or ยาง) refer to a number of Sino-Tibetan lan-guage speaking ethnic groups which reside primarily inKaren State, southern and southeastern Burma (Myan-mar). The Karen make up approximately 7 percent ofthe total Burmese population with approximately 5 mil-lion people.[2] A large number of Karen have migrated to

Karen flag

Thailand, having settled mostly on the Thai–Karen bor-der.The Karen are often confused with the Red Karen(Karenni), which is one of the tribes of Kayah in KayahState, Myanmar. One subgroup of the Karenni, thePadaung tribe, are best known for the neck rings wornby the women of this group of people. This tribe resideat the border region of Burma and Thailand.Some of the Karen, led primarily by the Karen Na-tional Union (KNU), have waged a war against the centralBurmese government since early 1949. The aim of theKNU at first was independence. Since 1976 the armedgroup has called for a federal system rather than an inde-pendent Karen State.

1.1 Origins

Karen legends refer to a 'river of running sand' which an-cestors reputedly crossed. Many Karen think this refersto the Gobi Desert, although they have lived in Burma forcenturies. The Karen constitute the third biggest ethnicpopulation in Burma, after the Bamars and Shans.[3]

The term “Karen” is an umbrella term that refersto a heterogeneous lot of ethnic groups that do notshare a common language, culture, religion or materialcharacteristics.[4] A pan-Karen ethnic identity is a rela-tively modern creation, established in the 1800s with theconversion of some Karens to Christianity and shaped byvarious British colonial policies and practices and the in-troduction of Christianity.[5][6]

1

2 CHAPTER 1. KAREN PEOPLE

Karen boy with traditional costume for Karen New Year

“Karen” is an Anglicisation of the Burmese word "Kayin"( ), whose etymology is unclear.[4] The word, whichwas originally a derogatory term referring to non-Buddhist ethnic groups, may have come from the Monlanguage, or is a corruption of Kanyan, the name of avanished civilization.[4]

In pre-colonial times, the low-lying Burmese and Mon-speaking kingdoms recognized two general categories ofKaren, the Talaing Kayin ( ), generally lowlan-ders who were recognized as the “original settlers” andessential to Mon court life, and the Karen ( ),highlanders who were subordinated or assimilated by theBamar.[7]

1.2 Distribution

The Karen people live mostly in the hills borderingthe eastern mountainous region and Irrawaddy delta

S'gaw Karen girls of Khun Yuam District, Mae Hong SonProvince, Thailand

Entrance of a Karen house in Northern Thailand

of Burma,[8] primarily in Karen State, with some inKayah State, southern Shan State, Ayeyarwady Region,Tanintharyi Region, Bago Division and in western Thai-land.The total number of Karen is difficult to estimate. Thelast reliable census of Burma was conducted in 1931. A2006 VOA article cites an estimate of seven million inBurma. There are another 400,000[9] Karen in Thailand,where they are by far the largest of the hill tribes. SomeKaren have left the refugee camps in Thailand to resettleelsewhere, including in North America, Australia, New

1.4. POLITICAL HISTORY 3

Densely populated Karen village in Northern Thailand

Karen terrace fields in Northern Thailand

Zealand, and the Scandinavian countries. In 2011, theKaren diaspora population was estimated to be approxi-mately 67,000.[10]

1.3 Population

No one really knows how many Karen people there are.There has never been an accurate census in Burma. WhenBurma was a British colony only Christian and AnimistKaren were recorded as Karen: Buddhist Karens wererecorded as being ethnic Burmans.More recent estimates of the size of the Karen are dis-torted by politics. In 1997 Burmese Army GeneralMaung Aye walked on a Karen flag and announced that“in twenty years you will only be able to findKaren peoplein a museum”. The Burmese military regime claims thereare less than a million Karen people, but this is clearlypolitically motivated and a gross underestimate. SomeKaren leaders claim that there are twenty million Karenpeople in Burma – or about forty per cent of the popu-lation. This is also obviously politically motivated and agross overestimate.More realistic estimates state there are between six andseven million Karen people in Burma. There are about300,000 “Thai-Karen” people living in Thailand. Thereare probably even more Karen living in Thailand as illegal

migrants, but it is impossible to know how many.

1.4 Political history

Further information: Internal conflict in Burma

A Karen village in Thailand.

1.4.1 British period

Following British victories in the three Anglo-Burmesewars, Burma was annexed as a province of British In-dia in 1886. Baptist missionaries introduced Christian-ity to Burma beginning in 1830, and they were success-ful in converting many Karen.[11] Christian Karens werefavoured by the British colonial authorities and were givenopportunities not available to the Burmese ethnic ma-jority, including military recruitment and seats in thelegislature.[12] Some Christian Karens began asserting anidentity apart from their non-Christian counterparts, andmany became leaders of Karen ethno-nationalist organi-zations, including the Karen National Union.[6]

In 1881 the Karen National Associations (KNA) wasfounded by western-educated Christian Karens to repre-sent Karen interests with the British. Despite its Chris-tian leadership, the KNA sought to unite all Karens ofdifferent regional and religious backgrounds into oneorganization.[13] They argued at the 1917 Montagu–Chelmsford hearings in India that Burma was not “yet in afit state for self-government". Three years later, after sub-mitting a criticism of the 1920 Craddock Reforms, theywon 5 (and later 12) seats in the Legislative Council of130 (expanded to 132) members. The majority BuddhistKarens were not organized until 1939 with the formationof a Buddhist KNA.[14]

In 1938 the British colonial administration recognizedKaren New Year as a public holiday.[14][15]

4 CHAPTER 1. KAREN PEOPLE

1.4.2 World War II

DuringWorldWar II, when the Japanese occupied the re-gion, long-term tensions between the Karen and Burmaturned into open fighting. As a consequence, manyvillages were destroyed and massacres committed byboth the Japanese and the Burma Independence Army(BIA) troops who helped the Japanese invade the coun-try. Among the victims were a pre-war Cabinet minis-ter, Saw Pe Tha, and his family. A government reportlater claimed the 'excesses of the BIA' and 'the loyalty ofthe Karens towards the British' as the reasons for theseattacks. The intervention by Colonel Suzuki Keiji, theJapanese commander of the BIA, after meeting a Karendelegation led by Saw Tha Din, appears to have preventedfurther atrocities.[14]

1.4.3 Post-war

The Karen people aspired to have the regions where theyformed the majority turned into a subdivision or “state”within Burma similar to what the Shan, Kachin and Chinpeoples had been given. A goodwill mission led by SawTha Din and Saw Ba U Gyi to London in August 1946failed to receive any encouragement from the British gov-ernment for any separatist demands.In January 1947 a delegation of representatives of theGovernor’s Executive Council headed by Aung San wasinvited to London to negotiate for the Aung San-AttleeTreaty, none of the ethnic minority groups were includedby the British government. The following month at thePanglong Conference, when an agreement was signed be-tween Aung San as head of the interim Burmese govern-ment and the Shan, Kachin and Chin leaders, the Karenwere present only as observers; the Mon and Arakanesewere also absent.[16]

The British promised to consider the case of the Karenafter the war. While the situation of the Karen was dis-cussed, nothing practical was done before the British leftBurma. The 1947 Constitution, drawn without Karenparticipation due to their boycott of the elections to theConstituent Assembly, also failed to address the Karenquestion specifically and clearly, leaving it to be dis-cussed only after independence. The Shan and Karennistates were given the right to secession after 10 years, theKachin their own state, and the Chin a special division.The Mon and Arakanese of Ministerial Burma were notgiven any consideration.[14]

1.4.4 Karen National Union

In early February 1947, the Karen National Union (KNU)was formed at a Karen Congress attended by 700 dele-gates from the Karen National Associations, both Baptistand Buddhist (KNA - founded 1881), the Karen Cen-tral Organisation (KCO) and its youth wing, the Karen

Youth Organisation (KYO), at Vinton Memorial Hall inYangon. The meeting called for a Karen state with aseaboard, an increased number of seats (25%) in the Con-stituent Assembly, a new ethnic census, and a continu-ance of Karen units in the armed forces. The deadlineof March 3 passed without a reply from the British gov-ernment, and Saw Ba U Gyi, the president of the KNU,resigned from the Governor’s Executive Council the nextday.[14]

JudsonMemorial Baptist Church is the main place of worship forthe Karen community in Mandalay, Myanmar

After the war ended, Burma was granted independence inJanuary 1948, and the Karen, led by the KNU, attemptedto co-exist peacefully with the Burman ethnic majority.Karen people held leading positions in both the govern-ment and the army. In the fall of 1948, the Burmese gov-ernment, led by U Nu, began raising and arming irregu-lar political militias known as Sitwundan. These militiaswere under the command of Major Gen. Ne Win andoutside the control of the regular army. In January 1949,some of these militias went on a rampage through Karencommunities.The Karen National Union has maintained its structureand purpose from the 1950s onward. The KNU acts agovernmental presence for the Karen people, offering ba-sic social services for those affected by the insurgency,such as Karen refugees or internally displaced Karen.These services include building school systems, provid-ing medical services, regulating trade and commerce, andproviding security through the Karen National LiberationArmy (KNLA), the KNU’s army.[17]

1.5. LANGUAGE 5

1.4.5 Insurgency

In late January 1949, the Army Chief of Staff, Gen.Smith Dun, a Karen, was removed from office and im-prisoned. He was replaced by the Burmese nationalistNe Win.[14] Simultaneously a commission was lookinginto the Karen problem and this commission was aboutto report their findings to the Burmese government. Thefindings of the report were overshadowed by this polit-ical shift at the top of the Burmese government. TheKaren National Defence Organisation (KNDO), formedin July 1947, then rose up in an insurgency against thegovernment.[14] They were helped by the defections ofthe Karen Rifles and the Union Military Police (UMP)units which had been successfully deployed in suppress-ing the earlier Burmese Communist rebellions, and cameclose to capturing Yangon itself. The most notable wasthe Battle of Insein, nine miles from Yangon, where theyheld out in a 112-day siege till late May 1949.[14]

Years later, the Karen had become the largest of 20 mi-nority groups participating in an insurgency against themilitary dictatorship in Yangon. During the 1980s, theKaren National Liberation Army (KNLA) fighting forcenumbered approximately 20,000. After an uprising ofthe people of Burma in 1988, known as the 8888 Upris-ing, the KNLA had accepted those demonstrators in theirbases along the border. The dictatorship expanded thearmy and launched a series of major offensives againstthe KNLA. By 2006, the KNLA’s strength had shrunkto less than 4,000, opposing what is now a 400,000-man Burmese army. However, the political arm of theKNLA - the KNU - continued efforts to resolve the con-flict through political means.The conflict continues as of 2006, with a new KNU head-quarters in Mu Aye Pu, on the Burmese–Thai border. In2004, the BBC, citing aid agencies, estimates that up to200,000 Karen have been driven from their homes duringdecades of war, with 160,000more refugees fromBurma,mostly Karen, living in refugee camps on the Thai side ofthe border. The largest camp is the one in Mae La, Takprovince, Thailand, where about 50,000 Karen refugeesare hosted.[18]

Reports as recently as February, 2010, state that theBurmese army continues to burn Karen villages, dis-placing thousands of people.[19] Many Karen, includ-ing people such as former KNU secretary Padoh MahnSha Lah Phan and his daughter, Zoya Phan, have ac-cused the military government of Burma of ethniccleansing.[20][21][22][23][24] The U.S. State Department hasalso cited the Burmese government for suppression ofreligious freedom.[25]

A2005NewYork Times article on a report by GuyHortoninto depredations by the Burma Army against the Karenand other groups in eastern Burma stated:

Using victims’ statements, photographs,maps and film, and advised by legal counsel to

the UN tribunal on the former Yugoslavia, hepurports to have documented slave labor, sys-tematic rape, the conscription of child soldiers,massacres and the deliberate destruction of vil-lages, food sources and medical services.[26]

The Refugee Crisis

Throughout the insurgency, hundreds of thousands ofKaren fled to refugee camps while many others (num-bers unknown) were internally displaced persons withinthe Karen state. The refugees were concentrated incamps along the Thailand-Myanmar border. Accord-ing to refugee accounts, the camps suffered from over-crowding, disease, and periodic attacks by the Myanmararmy.[27]

1.4.6 Democratic Karen Buddhist Army

During 1994 and 1995, dissenters from the Buddhist mi-nority in the KNLA formed a splinter group of the KNUcalled the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA),and went over to the side of the military junta. As a note,the DKBA split themselves from the KNU due to theKNLA’s weak central power. Additionally, the mostlyPwo-speaking Buddhist Karen of the DKBA felt a ten-sion with the KNU, whose leadership consisted for themost part of Sgaw-speaking Christians.[28] [29] The splitis believed to have led to the fall of the KNU headquartersat Manerplaw in January 1995.[30]

1.5 Language

The Karen languages, members of the Tibeto-Burmangroup of the Sino-Tibetan language family, consist ofthree mutually unintelligible branches: Sgaw, Pwo, andPa'o.[31][32] Karenni (Red Karen) and Kayan belong tothe Sgaw branch. The Karen languages are almostunique among the Tibeto-Burman languages in havinga subject–verb–object word order; other than Karen andBai, Tibeto-Burman languages feature a subject–object–verb order. This anomaly is likely due to the influence ofneighboring Mon and Tai languages.[33]

1.6 Religion

The majority of Karens are Theravada Buddhists whoalso practice animism, while approximately 25% areChristian.[34][35] Lowland Pwo-speaking Karens tend tobe more orthodox Buddhists, whereas highland Sgaw-speaking Karens tend to be heterodox Buddhists who pro-fess strong animist beliefs.

6 CHAPTER 1. KAREN PEOPLE

Buddhist Karen pilgrims at Ngahtatgyi Pagoda in Yangon

1.6.1 Animism

Karen animism is defined by a belief in klar (soul), 37spirits that embody every individual.[34] Misfortune andsickness are believed to be caused by klar that wan-der away, and death occurs when all 37 klar leave thebody.[34]

1.6.2 Buddhism

Karen Buddhists are the most numerous of the Karensand account for around 65–75% of the total Karenpopulation.[36] The Buddhist influence came from theMon who were dominant in Lower Burma until the mid-dle of the 18th century. Buddhist Karen are foundmainly in Kayin andMon States and in Yangon, Bago andTanintharyi Regions. There are Buddhist monasteries inmost Karen villages, and the monastery is the centre ofcommunity life. Merit-making activities, such as alms-giving, are central to Karen Buddhist life.[37]

Buddhism was brought to Pwo-speaking Karens in thelate 1700s, and the Yedagon Monastery atop MountZwegabin became the foremost center of Karen lan-guage Buddhist literature.[36] Many millennial sects werefounded throughout the 1800s, led by Karen Buddhistminlaung rebels.[38] Two sects, Telakhon (or Telaku) andLeke, were founded in the 1860s.[36] The Tekalu sect,founded in Kyaing and considered a Buddhist sect, is amixture of spirit worship, Karen customs and worshipof the future Buddha Metteyya.[36] The Leke sect wasfounded on the western banks of the Thanlwin River,and is no longer associated with Buddhism (as follow-ers do not venerate Buddhist monks).[36] Followers be-lieve that the future Buddha will return to Earth if theymaintain their moral practices (following the Dhammaand precepts), and they practice vegetarianism, hold Sat-urday services and construct distinct pagodas.[36] SeveralBuddhist socioreligious movements, both orthodox andheterodox, have arisen in the past century.[36] Duwae, atype of pagoda worship, with animistic origins, is also

practiced.[36]

There are several prominent Karen Buddhist monks, in-cluding Thuzana (S'gaw) and Zagara, who was conferredthe “Agga Maha Saddammajotika” title by the Burmesegovernment in 2004.[36] The Karen of Thailand [39] havetheir own religion.

1.6.3 Christianity

Tha Byu, the first convert to Christianity in 1828, wasbaptised by Rev George Boardman, an associate ofAdoniram Judson, founder of the American Baptist For-eign Mission Society. Today there are Christians belong-ing to the Catholic Church and various Protestant denom-inations. Some of the largest Protestant denominationsare Baptists and Seventh-day Adventists.[40][41] Alongside'orthodox' Christianity, some of those who identify them-selves as Christian also have syncretised elements of ani-mismwith Christianity. TheKaren of the Irrawaddy deltaaremostly Christians, whereas Buddhists tend to be foundmainly in Kayin state and surrounding regions. 25% ofKaren identify themselves as Christian.[42] Persecution ofChristians by the Burmese authorities continues to thisday.The Karen Baptist Convention (KBC) was established in1913 and the headquarters is located in Yangon with 20member associations throughout Burma. The KBC op-erates the K.B.C. Charity Clinic in Insein, Yangon. TheKBC also operates the Karen Baptist Theological Semi-nary in Insein. The seminary runs a theology program aswell as a secular degree program to fulfill young Karens’intellectual and vocational needs. The Pwo Karen BaptistConvention is located in Ahlone, Yangon and also oper-ates the Pwo Karen Theological Seminary.[43] There areother schools for Karen people inMyanmar, such as PakuDivinity School in Taungoo, Kothabyu Bible School inPathein, and Yangon Home Mission School. The Thai-land Karen Baptist Convention is located in Chiang Mai,Thailand.The Seventh-day Adventists have built several schools inthe Karen refugee camps in Thailand to Christianize theKaren people. Eden Valley Academy in Tak and KarenAdventist Academy in Mae Hong Son are the two largestSeventh-day Adventist Karen schools.

1.7 Karen Flag

Dr. Tee Than Pyar founded The Karen National Associ-ation in 1881, becoming its first chairman. Afterwards,Dr. Tee Than Pyar, Sayar San Baw from Thararwaddyserved as a chairman between 1930 and 1940. Duringthis period, he and other Karen leaders petitioned parlia-ment for the creation of a Karen flag and national anthem.That request was not ignored. It was discussed in parlia-

1.8. KAWTHOOLEI 7

ment and voted upon in 1935. The public was invited toparticipate in a competition to design the new flag. TheKaren National Flag played a predominant role duringrecent new year celebrations. The Karen National Flagplayed a predominant role during recent new year cele-brations. More than one hundred designs were received.Eventually, three were selected for consideration.Among the three designs selected, Mann Ba Khin, (BA),won the first prize. He was also a writer in the Karenorganization. In his flag design, there was a frog drum(called that because it is covered with frog skin). He saidancient Karen people used the frog drum during war andvenerated it. Karen people believed that it’s a living thing.The second winner, Sayar Moe from Taung Oo incorpo-rated a rising sun symbol. He noted the rising sun gave thebright light to all Karen people in the world; and sunlightcould erase fear. For instance, if a person in a particularfamily was sick, other family members were worried, be-ing fearful at night especially. When the daylight came,it could erase the fear. As well, sunlight gives life to allliving things. All human beings need sunlight and doctorshave even cured patients by exposing them to sunlight, asa medical treatment.The third winner, Dr. Ba Saw Dwe incorporated the im-age of a white elephant image in the Karen flag. Therewas an elephant image on the frog drum. According tohis definition, the white elephant is a precious treasure.Mann Ba Khin, the secretary of the Karen National As-sociation, led a group to incorporate all three elementsinto the final design, which he sent to the Karen NationalAssociation.In the final design, the color red was used on the fab-ric to speak of heroism and perseverance, white for pu-rity and clarity and blue for honesty and peace. Karenyouth bow in unity to honor their national flag. Karenyouth bow in unity to honor their national flag. Ninerays of light streaming from the rising sun indicated thenine regions from which the Karen people traced theirorigins. The frog drum symbolizes unity in traditionalKaren culture. In 1936, Karen army leaders added twoDohs (rounded seeds) under the frog drum in the Karenflag. The frog drum symbolizes unity in traditional Karenculture. In 1936, Karen army leaders added two Dohs(rounded seeds) under the frog drum in the Karen flag.Before Burma gained independence in 1937, Karen peo-ple held a Karen New Year celebration in Rangoon. Atthe celebration, the Karen flag was successfully hoisted inthe flag pole and Karen people bowed to it in unity.When the Karen armed revolution occurred on January31, 1949, some people from the AFPLF government ar-gued the Karen national flag was the flag of the rebels.After that, the government did not allow the flag to beused. However, some Karen leaders, who would not jointhe armed revolution, named Sayar Thar Hto and Sa-yar James Htun Aung and Saw Bel Lay bravely used the

Karen National flag during Karen New Year celebrationsin Rangoon.In the different regions of Burma where Karen live, andeven abroad, Buddhist and Christian Karen people haveused the Karen national flag during Wrist Tying cere-monies, cultural, public meetings and especially duringKaren New Year.

1.8 Kawthoolei

Kawthoolei is the Karen name for the state that the Karenpeople of Burma have been trying to establish since thelate 1940s. The precise meaning of the name is disputedeven by the Karen themselves; possible interpretationsinclude Flowerland and Land without evil, although, ac-cording to Martin Smith in Burma: Insurgency and thePolitics of Ethnicity, it has a double meaning, and canalso be rendered as the Land Burnt Black; hence the landthat must be fought for. Kawthoolei roughly approxi-mates to present-day Kayin State, some parts of Peguand Tanintharyi Division, although parts of the BurmeseAyeyarwady River delta with Karen populations havesometimes also been claimed. Kawthoolei as a name is arelatively recent invention, penned during the time of for-mer Karen leader Ba UGyi, who was assassinated aroundthe time of Burma’s independence from Britainpoep

1.9 See also• Karen State

• Karenni

• Karen Baptist Convention

• Karen Baptist Theological Seminary

• Karen of the Andamans

• Paku Divinity School

1.10 Footnotes[1] http://www.cdc.gov/tb/publications/guidestoolkits/

ethnographicguides/Burma/chapters/chapter1.pdfCenters for Disease Control and Prevention: BurmaHistory and Immigration to the United States, (2007)

[2] Radnofsky, Louise (2008-02-14). “Burmese rebel leadershot dead”. The Guardian (London). Retrieved 2008-03-08.

[3] “Kayin”. Myanmar.com. May 2006. Retrieved 28 Febru-ary 2011.

[4] Cheesman, Nick (2 September 2002). “Seeing ‘Karen’ inthe Union of Myanmar”. Asian Ethnicity (Carfax Publish-ing) 3 (2).

8 CHAPTER 1. KAREN PEOPLE

[5] Guo, Rongxing; Carla Freeman (2010). Managing FragileRegions: Method and Application. Springer. p. 19. ISBN978-1-4419-6435-9.

[6] Keyes, Charles F. Living at The Edge of Thai Society: TheKaren in The Highlands of Northern Thailand. Routledge.pp. 210–212. ISBN 978-1-134-35907-3.

[7] Harriden, Jessica (2002). ""Making a Name for Them-selves:" Karen Identity and Politicization of Ethnicity inBurma”. Journal of Burma Studies 7.

[8] This area is generally referred to as the Karen Hills incolonial literature, especially natural history texts such asEvans (1932).

[9] Delang, Claudio O. (Ed.) (2003). Living at the Edgeof Thai Society: The Karen in the Highlands of NorthernThailand. London: Routledge.

[10] Ardeth Maung Thawnghmung, The “Other” Karen inMyanmar: Ethnic Minorities and the Struggle withoutArms (UK: Lexington Books, 2012), 84.

[11] Mikael Gravers, “Conversion and Identity: Religion andthe Formation of Karen Ethnic Identity in Burma,” Ex-ploring Ethnic Identity in Burma, ed. by Mikael Gravers(Copenhagen: Nordic Institute of Asian Studies, 2007),228.

[12] Josef Silverstein, Burma: Military Rule and the Politics ofStagnation (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1977),16.

[13] Ardeth Maung Thawnghmung, The “Other” Karen inMyanmar: Ethnic Minorities and the Struggle withoutArms (UK: Lexington Books, 2012), 29.

[14] Smith, Martin (1991). Burma - Insurgency and the Politicsof Ethnicity. London and New Jersey: Zed Books. pp.50–51,62–63,72–73,78–79,82–84,114–118,86,119.

[15] “The First Karen New Year Message, 1938”. Karen Her-itage: Volume 1 - Issue 1. Retrieved 2009-01-11.

[16] Clive, Christie J., Anatomy of a Betrayal: The Karens ofBurma. In: A Modern History of Southeast Asia. Decolo-nization, Nationalism and Separatism. (I.B. Tauris, 2000):72.

[17] Phan, Zoya and Damien Lewis. Undaunted: My Strug-gle for Freedom and Survival in Burma. New York: FreePress, 2010.

[18] Fratticcioli, Alessio (2011). “Karen Refugees in Thailand(abridged)". Asian Research Center for Migration - Insti-tute of Asian studies (IAS), Chulalongkorn University.

[19] Burma army burns more than 70 houses of Karen people

[20] BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | Burma Karen families 'on therun'

[21] “Countries of Focus: Burma”. Christian Solidarity Net-work. Retrieved 28 February 2011.

[22] Refugeesinternational.org

[23] U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs

[24] Jacques, Adam (2009-05-10). “Credo: Zoya Phan”. TheIndependent (London).

[25] Burma

[26] A witness’s plea to end Myanmar abuse', by John Macgre-gor, New York Times, May 19, 2005.

[27] Phan, Zoya and Damien Lewis. Undaunted: My Strug-gle for Freedom and Survival in Burma. New York: FreePress, 2010.

[28] Ashley South, “Karen Nationalist Communities: the'Problem' of Diversity,” Contemporary Southeast Asia29.1 (2007): 61.

[29] Ashley South, “Burma’s longest War. Anatomy of theKaren conflict.” Transnational Institute and Burma Cen-ter Netherlands (PrimaveraQuint, Amsterdam 2009):2-4.

[30] Ba SawKhin (1998 - revised 2005). “Fifty Years of Strug-gle: A Review of the Fight for the Karen People’s Au-tonomy (abridged)". kwekalu.net. Retrieved 2009-01-11.Check date values in: |date= (help)

[31] STEDT: The Sino-Tibetan Family

[32] Lewis(1984)

[33] Matisoff 1991

[34] “The Karen people: culture, faith and history”. KarenBuddhist Dhamma Dutta Foundation. pp. 6, 24–28.

[35] Keenan, Paul. “Faith at a Crossroads”. Karen Heritage:Volume 1 - Issue 1, Beliefs.

[36] Hayami, Yoko (2011). “Pagodas and Prophets: Con-testing Sacred Space and Power among Buddhist Karenin Karen State”. The Journal of Asian Studies, 70(Association for Asian Studies) 70 (4): 1083–1105.doi:10.1017/S0021911811001574.

[37] Andersen, Kirsten Ewers (1978). “Elements of PwoKaren Buddhism” (in Copenhagen). The ScandinavianInstitute of Asian Studies. Retrieved 14 April 2012.

[38] Thawnghmung, ArdethMaung (2011). The “Other” Karenin Myanmar. Lexington Books. ISBN 978-0-7391-6852-3.

[39] http://www.chiangmai1.com/chiang_mai/karen.shtml

[40] “Karen Seventh-day Adventist Church Website”.

[41] “Adventist Southeast Asia Project”.

[42] “Karen people”.

[43] http://www.pkts.org

1.12. EXTERNAL LINKS 9

1.11 References

1.11.1 Print

• Marshall, Harry Ignatius (1997) [1922]. The KarenPeople of Burma. A Study in Anthropology and Eth-nology. Wihte Lotus Press.

• Anderson, Jon Lee (2004) [1992]. Guerrillas: Jour-neys in the Insurgent World. Penguin Books.

• Delang, Claudio O. (Ed.) (2003). Living at theEdge of Thai Society: The Karen in the Highlandsof Northern Thailand. London: Routledge. ISBN978-0-415-32331-4.

• Evans, W.H. (1932). The Identification of IndianButterflies (2nd ed). Mumbai, India: Bombay Natu-ral History Society.

• Falla, Jonathan (1991). True Love andBartholomew: Rebels of the Burmese Border.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN978-0-521-39019-4.

• Forbes, Andrew, and Henley, David, 'Chiang Mai’sHill Peoples’ in: Ancient Chiang Mai Volume 3.Chiang Mai, Cognoscenti Books, 2012. ASIN:B006IN1RNW

• Lewis, Paul; Elaine Lewis (1984). Peoples of theGolden Triangle. London: Thames and Hudson Ltd.ISBN 978-0-500-97472-8.

• Gravers, Mikael (2007). Exploring Ethnic Diversityin Burma. Copenhagen: Nordic Institute of AsianStudies. ISBN 978-87-91114-96-0.

• Matisoff, James A. (1991). “Sino-TibetanLinguistics: Present State and FutureProspects”. Annual Review of Anthropol-ogy (Annual Reviews Inc.) 20 (1): 469–504.doi:10.1146/annurev.an.20.100191.002345.

• Phan, Zoya (2009). Little Daughter: a Memoir ofSurvival in Burma and the West. Simon & Schuster.

• Scott, James C. (2009). The Art of Not Being Gov-erned: An Anarchist History of Upland SoutheastAsia. New Haven: Yale University Press. ISBN978-0-300-15228-9.

• Silverstein, Josef (1977). Burma: Military Rule andthe Politics of Stagnation. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell Uni-versity press. ISBN 0-8014-0911-X.

• Smith, Martin (1991). Burma - Insurgency and thePolitics of Ethnicity. London and New Jersey: ZedBooks. ISBN 0-86232-868-3. ISBN 0-86232-869-1 pbk.

• Thawngmung, Ardeth Maung (2012). The 'Other'Karen in Myanmar: Ethnic Minorities and the Strug-gle Without Arms. Lanham, UK: Lexington Books.ISBN 978-0-7391-6852-3.

1.11.2 Online

• Karen Baptist Convention in Thailand

• San C. Po, Burma and the Karens (London 1928)

• Adventist World Radio Karen

• "Burma:International Religious Freedom Report2005”. U.S. State Department. 2005-11-08. Re-trieved 2006-07-18.

• “Karen Weblinks”. Retrieved 2006-07-18.

• Kendal, Elizabeth (2006-03-09). “Day of Prayer forBurma”. Christian Monitor. Retrieved 2006-07-18.

• “Description of the Sino-Tibetan Language Fam-ily”. Retrieved 2006-07-18.

• “Recent humanitarian efforts serving the Karenpeople”. Retrieved 2010-12-10.

• Karen Buddhist Dhamma Dhutta Foundation. “TheKaren People: culture, faith and history”. Retrieved2013-02-12.

1.12 External links• the Karen people of Burma

• S'gaw Karen Grammar

• S'gaw Karen Dictionary

• S'gaw Karen Bible

• Karenvoice.net, shares the information of Karen in-teracting in the world from the past, struggling inBurma in the present and transiting in the worldagain in the future

• Karens Around the World Unite.

• Karen Human Rights Group, a new website doc-umenting the human rights situation of Karen vil-lagers in rural Burma

• Kawthoolei meaning “a land without evil”, is theKaren name of the land of Karen people. An in-dependent and impartial media outlet aimed to pro-vide contemporary information of all kinds — so-cial, cultural, educational and political

• Free Burma Rangers, website of NGO that provideshumanitarian assistance to Internally Displaced Peo-ple

10 CHAPTER 1. KAREN PEOPLE

• Index of IRF reports on Burma 2001-5

• Kwekalu literally “Karen Traditional Horn”, the onlyonline Karen language news outlet based in Mer-gui/Tavoy District of Kawthoolei

• Karen Women’s Organization

• Karen Audio Bible

Chapter 2

Democratic Karen Buddhist Army

The Democratic Karen Benevolent Army for-merly known as Democratic Karen Buddhist Army(Burmese: ;abbreviated DKBA) is a breakaway group of Buddhistformer soldiers and officers of the predominantly KarenChristian led Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA),one of the larger insurgent armies in Burma. Shortlyafter their breakaway in December 1994, the DKBAsigned a ceasefire with the Myanmar government inexchange for military and financial assistance providedthat it supported government offensives against theKNU.[1]

The Karen insurgency began with Burma’s independencefrom the British in 1948 and is the longest running inMyanmar today. Though the majority of Karens are Bud-dhist, the Karen political leadership and leadership of theKaren insurgency have always been overwhelming Chris-tian, a legacy of American missionary influence over the19th and early 20th centuries. The DKBA breakaway wasrooted in the perceived discrimination by the Christianleadership against local Buddhist Karen communities andthe Buddhist Karen rank-and-file of the Karen insurgencyKNLA.The Burmese army was quick to exploit the breakawayand soon agreed to a ceasefire arrangement with theDKBA, who have since profited from various sanctionedbusiness arrangements, at the expense of the KNLA wholong dominated trade and revenue extraction in the area.

2.1 1990s and 2000s

The DKBA was formed for a variety of reasons. ABuddhist monk, U Thuzana, had started a campaign in1992 of constructing pagodas all over Karen state in-cluding at the KNU headquarters at Manerplaw. Asthe KNU leadership would not grant permission for thewhite-painted pagoda, claiming it would attract govern-ment air strikes, Thuzana then started to encourage KNUtroops to leave the KNU. Following some skirmishes andfailed negotiations in early December, the DKBA an-nounced its formation and collective resignation from theKNU on 28 December 1994.[2]

Throughout much of the fighting in the Karen state since1994 the DKBA has been closely allied with the Myan-mar army against KNLA forces, who have gradually lostmore and more territory and bases inside the country.This group was reportedly given territory inside of Burmato rule over in exchange. They played a significant partin the capture of Manerplaw, a stronghold of the Karenrebels.Pado Mahn Shar, the secretary-general of the Karen Na-tional Union was shot dead in his home in Mae Sot,Thailand, on February 14, 2008. Many analysts claimthat the assassination was possibly carried out by soldiersof the DKBA.[3][4][5]

2.2 2010s

Main article: 2010 Burma border clashes

The informal alliance between the Myanmar junta andthe DKBA seemed to break down in the aftermath ofthe general election of 2010, when the DKBA clashedviolently with junta troops. The violence caused a mas-sive exodus of refugees across the border to Thailand,particularly through border crossings controlled by theDKBA. On November 12, Al-Jazeera English reportedthat the DKBA has joined forces with the Karen Na-tional Liberation Army, the two rebel armies forming analliance, in advance of a possible crackdown by the mili-tary government.[6]

The break-down DKBA is managed by Bo Nat KhannMway.

2.3 DKBA 5 Faction

The DKBA 5 is a faction of the DKBA led by Bo NatKhannMwayAKA Saw Lah Pwe which broke away fromthe DKBA in 2010 and originally had five battalions un-der his command and later had three. ";[7][8][9][10] Ac-cording to an Oct. 14, 2012 article in the Bangkok Post“Brigade 5 comprises about 1,500 of the KNLA’s esti-

11

12 CHAPTER 2. DEMOCRATIC KAREN BUDDHIST ARMY

mated 10,000 soldiers and is believed to be the strongestof the rebel’s seven brigades.” [11]

2.4 See also

• Internal conflict in Burma

• List of political and military organizations in Burma

2.5 References[1] http://www.ucdp.uu.se/gpdatabase/gpcountry.php?id=

112&regionSelect=7-Eastern_Asia#, Uppsala ConflictEncyclopedia, Myanmar (Burma)

[2] http://www.ucdp.uu.se/gpdatabase/gpcountry.php?id=112&regionSelect=7-Eastern_Asia#, Uppsala ConflictEncyclopedia, Myanmar (Burma)

[3] Radnofsky, Louise (2008-02-14). “Burmese rebel leadershot dead”. London: www.guardian.co.uk. Retrieved2008-02-14.

[4] “Burmese rebel leader is shot dead”. BBC News. 2008-02-14. Retrieved 2008-03-08.

[5] Radnofsky, Louise (2008-02-14). “Burmese rebel leadershot dead”. The Guardian (London). Retrieved 2008-03-08.

[6] “Myanmar rebel armies join forces”. Al-Jazeera English.2010-11-12. Retrieved 2010-11-12.

[7] Noreen, Naw (2010-11-07). “DKBA renegades seize bor-der town”. Democratic Voice of Burma. Retrieved 2011-01-03.

[8] Weng, Lawi (2010-11-08). “DKBA Troops Seize ThreePagodas Pass”. The Irrawaddy. Retrieved 2011-01-03.

[9] Wade, Francis (2010-08-03). “KNU general-secretarysays Saw La Bwe may come home”. Danielpedersen.org.Retrieved 2011-01-03.

[10] “Burma attack 'a warning of possible civil war'" (Pressrelease). Burma Campaign UK. 2010-11-08. Retrieved2011-01-03.

[11] Bangok Post, PEACE MAY PROVE ELUSIVE AS DI-VISIONS SAP STRENGTH OF KAREN NATIONALUNION by, Saw Yan Naing, 14 October 2012, http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/investigation/316916/peace-may-prove-elusive-as-divisions-sap-strength-of-karen-national-union

2.6 External links

• Revolution Reviewed: The Karens’ Struggle forRight to Self-determination and Hope for the FutureSawKapi, February 26, 2006, retrieved on 2006-11-30

• Fifty Years of Struggle: A Review of the Fight forthe Karen People’s Autonomy (abridged) Ba SawKhin, 1998 (revised 2005), retrieved on 2006-11-30

• Determined Resistance: An Interview with Gen. BoMya The Irrawaddy, October 2003

• Photos by James Robert Fuller

Chapter 3

God’s Army (revolutionary group)

This article is about the Burmese group. For other uses,see Army of God (disambiguation).

God’s Armywas an armed, revolutionary Christian forcethat opposed the military government of Burma.[1][2] Thegroup was an offshoot of the Karen National Union. Theywere based along the Thailand-Burma border, and con-ducted a string of audacious guerrilla actions—for exam-ple, seizing the embassy of Burma in Bangkok—duringthe 1990s and early 2000s.

3.1 Formation

God’s Armywas formed in an area of eastern Burma pop-ulated by the Karen ethnic group, who had been fight-ing against Burmese army at various times for over fiftyyears, primarily through the Karen National Union. Inthe early 90s the Burmese army launched a major oper-ation to secure the route of an oil pipeline through thearea.[3][4] God’s Army was led by brothers Johnny andLuther Htoo beginning in 1997, who were at that timeestimated to be only ten years of age. Some of the fol-lowers of the twins believed that they had “Animist andChristian powers”.[5] According to the legend among fol-lowers, the twins then rallied defenders of their village byshouting “God’s Army!", leading them to a victory overBurmese troops.[6] The legend of the boys was embracedby locals who viewed the existing Karen National Unionas corrupt and ineffective.[3]

3.2 Activity

God’s Army was situated in mountainous rainforestsalong the border between Burma and Thailand.[6] Theywere a band of Christian guerrillas who maintained anaustere lifestyle, including abstinence from sexual inter-course, alcohol, milk, eggs and pork. The group was esti-mated to have around 500 fighters in 1998, but graduallydeclined to between 100 and 200 men by early 2000 aftermany left to find work to support their refugee families.Meanwhile, the Burmese army had 21,000 troops in the

area.[7]

In October 1999, A group calling themselves VigorousBurmese Student Warriors seized the Burmese embassyin Bangkok and the situation ended with their departure,at which point they were taken in by God’s Army.[8]

In January 2000, 10 members of God’s Army seized ahospital in Ratchaburi, Thailand.[9] The group held 700to 800 patients and staff members hostage for 22 hours.They demanded the Thai government stop shelling Karenpositions in Burma and treatment for their wounded. Thaisecurity forces stormed the hospital, killing all 10 of thegunmen.[6] After the raid, God’s Army were strenuouslypursued by the Tatmadaw (Burmese armed forces) andshunned by other Karen rebels.

3.3 Surrender and disbandment

In January 2001, the Htoo twins and the less than 20 re-maining members of God’s Army surrendered to Thaisoldiers and requested sanctuary.[8] They abandoned theKarens’ goal of an autonomous or independent homeland,in exchange for permission to stay in Thailand. In July2006, Johnny Htoo surrendered to Burma’s military gov-ernment with eight other members of God’s Army in twogroups.[10]

3.4 See also

• Karen National Union

3.5 References[1] “God’s Army”. GlobalSecurity.org.

[2] Terry McCarthy and Robert Horn (2000-02-07).“Leading God’s Army”. Time Magazine.

[3] “Two little boys”. The Guardian (London). 2000-07-27.Retrieved 2012-01-16. “The cameras found the studentsin the camp of the twins, who were nine years old at thetime”

13

14 CHAPTER 3. GOD’S ARMY (REVOLUTIONARY GROUP)

[4] “Terrorist Organization Profile: God’s Army”. NationalConsortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses toTerrorism. Retrieved 2012-01-16. “Johnny and LutherHtoo, twin brothers who were only nine years old whenthey formed the God’s Army...”

[5] Richard S. Ehrlick (2006-07-27). “Bizarre 'God’s Army'Led By Young Boys Surrenders”. Global Politician.

[6] “The Twin Terrors”. Time. 2000-02-07. Retrieved 2013-11-02.

[7] Mydans, Seth (2000-04-01). “Burmese Rebel ChiefMoreBoy Than Warrior”. NY Times. Retrieved 2013-11-02.

[8] “Burmese Rebel Twins and 14 Followers Surrender inThailand”. NY Times. 2001-01-17. Retrieved 2013-11-02.

[9] The Washington Post. 2000-01-24 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/pmextra/jan00/24/hostage.htm |url= missing title (help).

[10] “Myanmar Teen Rebel Leader Surrenders”. Las VegasSun. 2006-07-25. Archived from the original on 2008-01-04. Retrieved 2009-09-14.

Chapter 4

Kantarawadi

Territories annexed by Thailand in the Shan and Karenni Statesduring WWII.

The ruler of Kantarawadi (standing in the middle of the backrow), at the Delhi Durbar in 1903

Kantarawadi, also known as Gantarawadi,[1] was oneof the Karenni States in what is today Kayah State inBurma. It was also known as “Eastern Karenni” owingto the location of part of its territory east of the SalweenRiver.[2]

4.1 History

According to local tradition in the early times of theKarenni states there was a principality led by a “Sawphya”that was under the overlordship of a Shan prince. Thisstate finally became independent in the 18th century. Inthe 19th century the Karenni state was divided into fiveprincipalities (sawphyas).In 1864 a Karenni prince requested the status of Britishprotectorate for his state, but the British authorities didnot show any interest. After the death of this prince in1869 his two sons renewed the petition claiming that theyfeared Burmese ambitions on their state. The British re-fused again, but agreed to arbitrate before the King ofBurma. Since the Burmese monarchy insisted in theirdemands on the Karenni territories, the British grantedrecognition to four states, Kyebogyi, Namekan (Nam-mekon), Naungpale and Bawlake, which became inde-pendent under British protection on 21 June 1875. Kan-tarawadi state, however, remained independent withoutofficial protection. Kantarawadi was heavily fined in1888 for the disturbances caused byMyoza Sao Law Paw.After his successor Sao Lawi agreed to pay a tribure ofRs 5,000 to the British government, he was granted thetitle of Saopha.[1]

On 27 May 1942, during World War II, KengtungState was invaded and its capital captured by the ThaiPhayap Army.[3] Following a previous agreement be-tween Thai Prime Minister Plaek Phibunsongkhram andthe Japanese Empire, in December the same year theThai administration occupied the area of KantarawadiState between the Thai border and the Salween, as wellas neighbouring Kengtung andMöngpan. The annexationby Thailand as Saharat Thai Doem northern province wasformalised on 1 August 1943.[4] Following the defeat andsurrender of the Japanese Empire, Thailand left the ter-ritories it had annexed to the north in 1945. However,the Thai government officially relinquished its claim overKantarawadi State only in 1946 as part of the conditionfor admission to the United Nations and the withdrawalof all wartime sanctions for having sided with the Axispowers.[5]

15

16 CHAPTER 4. KANTARAWADI

4.1.1 Rulers

The rulers of Kantarawadi bore the title of Saopha after1903.[6]

• 1837? Maung Pon (Pe Baw)

• 1845? Papaw Kyi

• 1850? Sao Lasa

• c.1850 - 1866 Sao Pyatin

• 1866 - 1868 Sao Law Paw (d. 1930)

Myozas

• 1868 - Dec 1888 Sao Law Paw (s.a.)

• 28 Jan 1889 - 3 Jan 1903 Sao Lawi (b. 1852 - d.1907)

Saophas

• 1 Jan 1903 - 8 Jul 1907 Sao Lawi (s.a.)

• 2 Dec 1907 - 1909 Hkun Nan (b. 1880 - d. 1909)

• 22 Apr 1910 - c.1948 Hkun Li (b. 1891 - d. 19..)

4.2 See also• Western Karenni

4.3 References[1] Imperial Gazetteer of India, v. 15, p. 36.

[2] Khu Oo Reh (October 2006). “Highlights in Karenni His-tory to 1948”. Retrieved 19 December 2010.

[3] Thailand and the Second World War at the Wayback Ma-chine (archived October 27, 2009)

[4] Shan and Karenni States of Burma

[5] David Porter Chandler & David Joel Steinberg eds. InSearch of Southeast Asia: A Modern History. p. 388

[6] Ben Cahoon (2000). “World Statesmen.org: Shan andKarenni States of Burma”. Retrieved 7 July 2014.

Chapter 5

The Karen Hilltribes Trust

The Karen Hilltribes Trust is a charity “dedicated toworking with the Karen people of Northern Thailand tohelp themselves build a better future”.[1]

The charity has three main focuses:

• to improve health

• to improve education

• to create income generation

The Trust’s vision is to “see the Karen people empoweredto help themselves in a sustainable way”[2]

The trust is a registered charity, no. 1093548. In 2008the trust’s income was just under £360,000[3] and sinceinception has raised over £1.5 million.[4] Currently, thecharity has raised over £2.5 million.[5]

5.1 History

The trust was founded by PenelopeWorsley in 1999 afterthe death of her son RichardWorsley, who had previouslyspent six months volunteering with the Karen people dur-ing his gap year. After joining the army, Richard died ina car crash in Germany in 1996, following this the Karendedicated a water system to him in a remote village.[4]

5.2 Collaborating charities

• The Christadelphian Meal-a-Day Fund

• The SET Foundation

• The Richard Hua Trust

5.3 Media links

Penelope Worsley on Home Truths, BBC Radio Four

5.4 External links• The Karen Hilltribes Trust

• The Christadelphian Meal-a-Day Fund

5.5 References[1] http://www.karenhilltribes.org.uk/ 24/08/09

[2] http://www.karenhilltribes.org.uk/about-us/welcome24/08/09

[3] http://www.charity-commission.gov.uk/ShowCharity/RegisterOfCharities/CharityWithoutPartB.aspx?RegisteredCharityNumber=1093548&SubsidiaryNumber=0

[4] http://www.bbc.co.uk/northyorkshire/content/articles/2008/10/31/karen_hilltribes_feature.shtml

[5] http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/features/charity/8953951.Karen_Hilltribe_children_dance_at_Monks_Cross/

17

Chapter 6

Karen National Liberation Army

Flag of KNLA

The Karen National Liberation Army (Burmese:; abbreviated

KNLA) is the military branch of the Karen Na-tional Union (KNU), which campaigns for the self-determination of the Karen people of Burma. TheKNLAhas been fighting the Burmese government since 1949.The KNLA may have had a strength of roughly 5,000soldiers in 2006.[1] It is nominally divided into sevenbrigades[1] and a 'Special Force'.[2]

6.1 History

At the time of Burma's independence from the British in1948, there was considerable tension between the Karencommunity and the Burmese majority. Some Karenssought independence while others attempted co-existencewithin Burma. The KNLA was previously called theKaren National Defence Organisation (KNDO). TheKNDO was an armed organisation which was formed bythe KNU in 1947 to defend Karen communities and in-terests. Most KNDO soldiers had previously served inthe forces of British Burma.In early 1949, portions of a socialist political militiaraised by the government went on a rampage in Karencivilian areas. The Burmese government then arrested theKaren leader of the armed forces and replaced him withradical Burmese anti-Karen nationalist Ne Win. Contin-ued attacks against Karen dominated townships around

Rangoon and the arrest of Karen political leaders led theKaren national Union to declare armed struggle, and theworld’s longest running civil war began.Early in the fighting, Karen forces overran much ofNorthern Burma including towns such as Mandalay andestablished strong positions outside Rangoon at InseinTownship. But lacking a port from which to receive mili-tary supplies, the Karen forces gradually withdrew to thesoutheast of Burma.In 1976 the Karen National Union changed its policyon wanting an independent state, and joined a new al-liance, the National Democratic Front. This alliance ofarmed ethnic political parties supported a federal unionof Burma.[3]

6.2 Recent history

In 1994 a group of Buddhist soldiers in the KNLA, claim-ing that the KNLA was unfairly dominated by Chris-tians, broke away from the KNLA to form a new force,the DKBA, which soon organised a cease-fire with theBurmese military government.In 1995 KNLA lost Kawmoora and Myawaddy to theDKBA. This considerably reduced the KNLA’s bordertrade taxation.[4]

A group calling itself the Karen Peace Council (KPC)broke away from the KNLA in February 2007, andorganised a cease-fire with the Burmese militarygovernment.[5]

On February 14, 2008, Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan, theKNU secretary-general, was assassinated in Thailand.On May 13, 2009, a senior Burma Army officer, Brig.-Gen. Kaung Myat was killed by the KNLA. Hehad been the commander of No 5 Military OperationsCommand.[6] Next month, on June 19, DKBA soldiersstarted to attack KNLA Brigade 7 headquarters, whichthey then captured on June 23.[7]

18

6.6. EXTERNAL LINKS 19

6.3 Events in 2010

See also: 2010 Burma border clashes

During 2010, increasing numbers of Democratic KarenBuddhist Army (DKBA) soldiers defected to the KNLA,or fled to Thailand, following the announcement that theDKBAwould be absorbed into the Burmesemilitary gov-ernment’s Border Guard. The DKBA had previouslybeen allied to, but distinct from, government forces.In November 2010, following the general election of2010, large parts of the Democratic Karen BuddhistArmy are alleged to have mutinied and re-aligned them-selves with the KNLA, resulting in the escalating conflictwith junta troops. The two rebel armies have formed analliance, in advance of a possible crackdown by the mili-tary government.[8]

6.4 Foreigners

A number of foreigners have gone to Burma to fight forthe KNLA.Dave Everett, a former Australian SAS soldier, fought forthe KNLA and was later arrested in Australia for tryingto steal money to fund the KNLA. Des Ball, Professor atANU, has advised them on military strategy.Thomas Bleming, an American, claims to have fought forthe Karen and has written a book called “War in KarenCountry”.[9]

Three of the KNLA’s French volunteers were killed inaction fighting for the KNLA: Jean-Phillipe Courreges(killed 1985), Olivier Thiriat (killed 1989), and Guil-laume Oillic (killed 1990).

6.5 References

[1] http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/EJ18Ae03.html

[2] 'Special Force' Joins KNLA on High Alert

[3] Karen National Union website www.knuhq.org

[4] ISBN 87-11-23074-6 Carsten Jensen's source is PadohMahn Sha Lah Phan

[5] Karen Peace Council Rejects BGF Proposal

[6] Senior Burmese Commander killed by KNLA Soldiers

[7] Mae La Refugees Fear DKBA Attack

[8] “Myanmar rebel armies join forces”. Al-Jazeera English.2010-11-12. Retrieved 2010-11-12.

[9] Bleming, Thomas James (2007). War in Karen Country:Armed Struggle for a Free and Independent Karen State inSoutheast Asia. New York; Bloomington, Ind.: iUniverse.ISBN 0-595-69327-X. OCLC 609978846.

6.6 External links• Karen National Union home page

• Victory over KNU, new order on Thai-Burma bor-der

• This Month in History - May

• Karen rebels go on offensive in Myanmar

• Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) onSchema-root

• BLOG: BURMA CONFLICT SITUATION RE-PORT

• PHOTO ESSAYS OF ACTIVIST CAUSES ANDDEMOS

• Six month battle report for the Karen National Lib-eration Army

• The flag of the Karen National Liberation Army

Chapter 7

Karen National Union

Flag of kawthoolei

The Karen National Union (Burmese:; abbreviated KNU) is a political organisa-

tion with an armed wing, the Karen National Libera-tion Army (KNLA) that represents the Karen people ofBurma. It operates in mountainous eastern Burma, andhas underground networks in other areas of Burma whereKaren people live as a minority group. In the Karen lan-guage, this area is called Kawthoolei. Some of the Karen,led primarily by the Karen National Union (KNU), havewaged a war against the central government since early1949. The aim of the KNU at first was independence.Since 1976 the armed group has called for a federal sys-tem rather than an independent Karen State.In January 2012, Burma’s military-backed civilian gov-ernment signed a ceasefire deal with the KNU in Hpa-an,the capital of eastern Kayin State. Aung Min, the Rail-way Minister, and General Mutu Sae Poe of the KNU ledthe peace talks.[1]

7.1 Overview

The KNU was dominated for three decades by its long-time leader BoMya, who was president from 1976–2000.The KNU was for many years able to fund its activi-ties by controlling black market trade across the bor-der with Thailand, and through local taxation. After thefailed 8888 Uprising of the Burmese people in 1988, theBurmese military government turned to China for help inconsolidating its power. Various economic concessionswere offered to China in exchange for weapons. TheBurmese Army was massively expanded and began to of-fer deals to groups fighting the government. The groups

were offered the choice of cooperating with the militaryjunta or being destroyed.In 1994, a group of Buddhist soldiers in the KNLA, citingdiscrimination by the KNU’s overwhelmingly Christianleadership against the Buddhist Karen majority, brokeaway and established the Democratic Karen BuddhistArmy (DKBA). They were led by a monk widely thoughtto be an agent of the Burmese dictatorship. The DKBAquickly agreed to a ceasefire with the Burmese army andwas granted business concessions at the expense of theirformer KNU overlords. The KNU and DKBA have sincebeen in regular fighting, with the DKBA actively sup-ported by the Burmese army.The KNU’s effectiveness was severely diminished afterthe fall of its headquarters at Manerplaw, near the Thaiborder, in 1995.Padoh Mahn Sha La Phan, the secretary-general of theunion was shot dead in his home in Mae Sot, Thai-land, on 14 February 2008, possibly by soldiers of theDKBA.[2][3][4]

Since then, the KNU and KNLA continued to fight theBurma state military (Tatmadaw) by forming guerrillaunits and basing themselves in temporary jungle campson the Thai-Burmese border. Following its principle ofno surrender, the KNU continued despite a precariousstate of existence. Nonetheless, their fight continues togarner the sympathy of people around the world sincethe KNU has been fighting for the Karen people, one ofthe many ethnic nationalities of Burma that are experi-encing ethnic cleansing under the military regime’s FourCuts campaigns (Pyat Lay Pyat), a strategy where intelli-gence, finances, food and recruits are eliminated througha scorched-earth policy.Several attempts have been made to conclude a form ofpeace with Burma’s military junta, the State Peace andDevelopment Council (SPDC), but with little success.The 2004 peace talks yielded only an informal ceasefirewhich the regime used to reinforce their frontline troops.Analysts realized this was a ruse, and sure enough, offen-sives against KNU held areas have resumed in earnest.The Karen conflict is the longest internal war in the world,having been waged since 31 January 1949.[5] The KNUwants a political settlement and supports a federal Burma.

20

7.4. TIMELINE 21

In March 2012, a senior political leader of KNU, PhadoMahn Nyein Maung, was found guilty of high treason un-der the Illegal Association Act, for his involvement withthe Karen rebellion and sentenced to 20 years.[6] He wasfreed soon afterward and sent back to Thailand.[7]

7.2 Leadership

The Karen National Union leadership is a democrati-cally elected body with individuals elected at a four-yearly congress. The KNU Congress is recognized asthe KNU’s supreme legislative body and it is here thatthe President, Vice-President, General Secretary, JointSecretaries 1 and 2 and the Central Executive Commit-tee (CEC), the Central Standing Committees (CSC) andcandidate members are elected. The seven KNU districtsare responsible for electing their own District Chairmansand District Standing Committee leaders every two years.As the District Chairmans and Brigade Commanders areelected at local levels, they are automatically appointedas Central Standing Committee Members. The DistrictChairmans and Brigade Commanders together with nom-inated District Standing Committee Members attend theKNU congresses. In addition, elected Central Stand-ing Committee members would provide the ministers for14 Departments including Culture, Defence, Education,Forestry, Foreign Affairs, Health and Mining. The CECis made up of 11 members that are responsible for theday-to-day running of the KNU. The CSC meets annu-ally, however when issues arise that either directly affectthe KNU policies and/or the existence of the KNU organ-isation, the CEC will call a CSC Emergency Meeting.[8]

Additionally the Foreign Affairs Department appointsKNU representatives. These representatives are basedamong the Karen communities who support KNU politi-cal goals and objectives in their respective countries.

7.3 Direction (2012)• Secretary General: P'doh Saw Kwe Htoo Win• Vice President: Naw Zipporah Sein• President: General Saw Mutu Sae Poe

7.4 Timeline

7.4.1 1974

KNU 9th congress held in September 1974[9]

7.4.2 1995

KNU 11th congress.[10]

7.4.3 2000

KNU 12th congress.[10]

7.4.4 2005

The 13th KNU congress was held from 12 to 16December.[11]

7.4.5 2008

The 14th KNU congress was held from 6 to 20 Oct. Itwas held on KNU-controlled territory[11]

7.4.6 2009

KarenNational Union’s fighting force has been reduced to3000–5000 fighters[12] and on 25 June KNLA’s Brigade7 headquarters is overrun.[13]

7.4.7 2010

On 2 November 2010, the Karen National Union be-came members of an alliance which includes: the KarenNational Union (KNU), Karenni National ProgressiveParty (KNPP), Chin National Front (CNF), Kachin In-dependence Organisation (KIO), New Mon State Party(NMSP) and the Shan State Army North (SSA-N). [14]

7.4.8 2012

The Karen National Union held its 15th Congress at LayWah, 7 Brigade, on 26 November 2012. This congressheralded in a pivotal moment in the resistance group’shistory as it occurred at a time of political in-fighting inrelation to how best to negotiate a ceasefire agreementwith the Burmese government.

7.4.9 2013

From 30October to 2 November 2013, an unprecedentedmeeting took place at the Kachin Independence Organi-sation headquarters in Laiza. For the first time, represen-tatives of 17 armed ethnic opposition groups were able tomeet in Burma with the consent of the Government.This Laiza conference finally resulted in the formation ofa 13 member Nationwide Ceasefire Coordinating Team(NCCT) and the signing of an ‘11-Point Common Posi-tion of Ethnic Resistance Organisations on NationwideCeasefire’ or Laiza agreement. The NCCT is a workingteammade up of all the ethnic armed organisations. Their

22 CHAPTER 7. KAREN NATIONAL UNION

mandate is to take responsibility on writing the nation-wide ceasefire document based on mutual understand-ing between the different armed groups so far. How-ever, at the Law Khee Lah Conference it was agreed thatNCCT has the mandate to discuss and change the doc-ument technically, except at policy level. Once the fi-nal document is ready, the respective ethnic organisationleaders can deicide and discuss with the Union Peace-making Working Committee (UPWC) on the nationwideceasefire.[15]

7.5 See also• Kayin State• Internal conflict in Burma

7.6 References[1] “Burma government signs ceasefire with Karen rebels”.

BBC News. 12 January 2012.

[2] Radnofsky, Louise (14 February 2008). “Burmese rebelleader shot dead”. The Guardian (London). Retrieved 14February 2008.

[3] “Burmese rebel leader is shot dead”. BBC News. 14February 2008. Retrieved 8 March 2008.

[4] Radnofsky, Louise (14 February 2008). “Burmese rebelleader shot dead”. The Guardian (London). Retrieved 8March 2008.

[5] “Burma’s Longest War: Anatomy of the Karen Conflict”.Tni.org. Retrieved 14 January 2012.

[6] “Myanmar court jails ethnic rebel leader for high treason”.Daily Times. 14 March 2012. Retrieved 14 March 2012.

[7] “Burma frees ethnic Karen rebel leader”. BBC News. 19March 2012. Retrieved 22 March 2012.

[8] http://www.knuhq.org

[9] “1970’s Struggle for Identity”. Burmalibrary.org. Re-trieved 14 January 2012.

[10] “Interview with Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan”. Burmadi-gest.info. Retrieved 14 January 2012.

[11] “KNU holds its 14th congress”. Dvb.no. 16 December2005. Retrieved 14 January 2012.

[12] Post. “The TimesMarch 24, 2009 Burma: world’s longestwar nears its end”. The Times. UK. Retrieved 14 January2012.

[13] “KNU Headquarters Overrun: Now What?". Ir-rawaddy.org. Retrieved 14 January 2012.

[14] “Armed ethnic groups denied vote form historic alliance”.Mizzima.com. 3 November 2010. Retrieved 14 January2012.

[15] http://www.knuhq.org/knu_involvement_in_ethnic_unity.html

7.7 External links• Armed-groups: KNU

• KNU homepage

• http://www.karenwomen.org/

• Revolution Reviewed: The Karens’ Struggle forRight to Self-determination and Hope for the FutureSaw Kapi, 26 February 2006, retrieved on 2006-11-30

• Fifty Years of Struggle: A Review of the Fight forthe Karen People’s Autonomy (abridged) Ba SawKhin, 1998 (revised 2005), Retrieved on 2006-11-30

• Determined Resistance: An Interview with Gen. BoMya The Irrawaddy, October 2003, Retrieved on2006-11-30

• Karen HeritageKaren History and Culture Preserva-tion Society

• Karen National Union Homepage

• Karen Martyrs’ Day Marked by Calls for Unity SawYan Naing, The Irrawaddy, 13 August 2008

• Remembering our heroes and rethinking the revolu-tion Saw Kapi, Mizzima, 13 August 2008

Chapter 8

Karen of the Andamans

TheKaren of the Andamans are Karen people who livein the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.The Karen were encouraged to settle in the Andaman is-lands in 1924 by Dr Marshall, the principal of the KarenBaptist Theological Seminary, following a visit to hiscousin, who was the commissioner there. In 1925, thefirst thirteen families arrived, led by a priest, ReverendLuygi. In 1926, another fifty families arrived and thefirst Karen village, Webi, was founded on the Middle An-daman Island. [1] They worked as foresters, for whichpurpose the British government had moved them to theIslands with the help of the missionaries,[2] and the pop-ulation of the village was about 500 people in 2009.[3]

In 2004, the total population of Karen in the Andamanswas about 2000 people, living in eight villages in theMayabunder tehsil of the North and Middle Andamandistrict: Borang, Chipon, Deopur, Lataw, Karmatang 9and 10, Lucknow (Burmadera) and Webi.[1]

A government declaration was made on 12 December2005, reserving some government jobs and places inhigher education for the Karen as one of the Other Back-ward Classes in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.[4]

The Karen respect the natural forest in a spiritual way andso avoid defiling it by spitting or urinating. Their har-vesting of its resources for their community is sensitiveto the need for sustainability and so they avoid killingfemale animals in their hunting. They use a variety offorest plants for construction, food and medicine. Forexample, they make canoes from the trunks of mulberrytrees (artocarpus chaplasha Roxb.) and use a paste of thesweet flag laniti with other aromatic plants as a poulticefor colds and headaches.[5]

8.1 References

[1] SameeraMaiti (2004), The Karen – A Lesser Known Com-munity of the Andaman Islands, ISLANDS of the WORLDVIII International Conference “Changing Islands – Chang-ing Worlds”, 1-7 November 2004, Kinmen Island (Que-moy), Taiwan

[2] Venkateswar, Sita (2004), Development and Ethnocide:Colonial Practices in the Andaman Islands, IWGIA, p. 16,

ISBN 978-87-91563-04-1

[3] Edith Mirante (2009), Island of Peace, The Irrawaddy 17(5)

[4] Philipp Zehmisch (2012), “The Struggle for OBC”, A Xe-rox of India Policies and Politics of Migration in an over-seas colony, ISBN 978-3-9809131-1-9

[5] MU Sharief, S Kumar, PG Diwakar, TVRS Sharma(2005), Traditional Phytotherapy among Karens of Mid-dle Andaman, Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge 4(4): 429–436

23

Chapter 9

Karenni Army

The Karenni Army (abbreviated KA) is the mili-tary branch of the Karenni National Progressive Party(KNPP), which campaigns for the self-determination ofthe Karenni people of Burma.On 7 March 2012, the Burmese government signed aceasefire agreement with the KNPP, in the presence of in-ternational observers from the UN High Commission forRefugees, British Council and the American embassy.[1]A similar ceasefire deal was signed in 1995, but it wasdissolved within three months.[1]

9.1 Karenni State and its short his-tory

Karenni State is a state of Myanmar. Situated in easternMyanmar, it is bounded on the north by Shan State, onthe east by Thailand’s Mae Hong Son Province, and onthe south and west by Kayin State (Karen State). It liesapproximately between 18° 30' and 19° 55' north latitudeand between 94°40' and 97° 93' east longitude. The areais 11,670 km2 (4,510 sq mi). Its capital is Loikaw (alsospelt Loi-kaw). The estimated population in 1998was ap-proximately 207,357, according to UNICEF. It is inhab-ited primarily by the Karenni ethnic group, also known asRed Karen or Kayah, a Sino-Tibetan people.Karenni State is located in the eastern part of Myan-mar. The relief of Karenni State is mountainous with theDawna Range and the Karen Hills also known as “Kayah-Karen” mountains separated by the Salween River as itflows through Karenni State. Balu Chaung, called NamPilu in local language, flows from Inle Lake and convergeswith the Salween in southern Karenni State.Lawpita Dam, built in 1950 as a bilateral reparationagreement with Japan, is a major hydroelectric produc-tion dam which produces a quarter of the total hydroelec-tric power generation in Myanmar.The Karenni Stateswas the name given to the three states of Kantarawadi,Kyebogyi and Bawlake. These states were located southof the Federated Shan States and east of British Burma.According to the 1930 census, the states had a total popu-lation of 58,761 with Kantarawadi (3,161 square miles or8,190 square kilometres), 30,677, Kyebogyi (790 square

miles or 2,000 square kilometres), 14,282 and Bawlake(568 square miles or 1,470 square kilometres), 13,802.The British government recognized and guaranteed theindependence of the Karenni States in an 1875 treatywith Burmese King Mindon Min, by which both par-ties recognized the area as belonging neither to Kon-baung Burma nor to Great Britain. Consequently, theKarenni States were never fully incorporated into BritishBurma. The Karenni States were recognized as tribu-tary to British Burma in 1892, when their rulers agreedto accept a stipend from the British government. In the1930s, the Mawchi Mine in Bawlake was the most im-portant source of tungsten in the world. The Constitutionof the Union of Burma in 1947 proclaimed that the threeKarenni States be amalgamated into a single constituentstate of the union, called Karenni State. It also providedfor the possibility of secession from the Union after 10years. In August 1948, the Karenni leader U Bee HtuRe was assassinated by central government militia for hisopposition to the inclusion of the Karenni States in theUnion of Burma. An armed uprising swept the state thathas continued to the present-day. In 1952, the formerShan state of Mong Pai (1901. pop - 19,351) was addedto Karenni State, and the whole renamed Kayah State,possibly with the intent of driving a wedge between theKarenni (in Kayah State) and the rest of the Karen peo-ple (in Karen State), both fighting for independence. In1957, pro-independence groups already active in the areaformed the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP),backed by its own army, the Karenni Army (KA). Apartfrom a brief ceasefire in 1995, the KA has been fightingever since. Rivals to the KNPP include the leftist KayanNew Land Party (KNLP), and the Karenni National Peo-ple’s Liberation Front (KNPLF), both of which are nowallied with the Myanmar military.

9.2 References

[1] “Burma: Government, Rebels Sign Ceasefire”. UCANews. 8 March 2012. Retrieved 15 March 2012.

24

9.3. EXTERNAL LINKS 25

9.3 External links• Karenni Army (KA) (Myanmar), GROUPS - ASIA- ACTIVE

• Karenni State

• Karenni Independence Through Education

• Conflict andDisplacement inKarenni: TheNeed forConsidered Responses

Chapter 10

Karenni States

Karenni princes at the Delhi Durbar in 1903. The rulers ofBawlake, Kantarawadi and Kyebogyi standing in the back row.

Territories annexed by Thailand in the Shan and Karenni Statesduring WWII in order to form the Saharat Thai Doem northernprovince.

The Karenni States, also known as Karen States, wasthe name formerly given to the states inhabited mainly bythe Red Karen, in the area of present-day Kayah State,northern Burma. They were located south of the Feder-ated Shan States and east of British Burma.The British government recognized and guaranteed theindependence of the Karenni States in an 1875 treaty withBurmese KingMindonMin, by which both parties recog-

nized the area as belonging neither to Burma nor to GreatBritain. Consequently, the Karenni States were neverfully incorporated into British Burma. The Karenni statesformed for a time the “Kayah State” in post-independentBurma,[1] but on 29 Apr 1959 both the Shan and theKayah rulers formally surrendered their ruling powers tothe Burmese government.[2]

10.1 History

There are no historical data on the Karenni States beforethe 19th century. According to local tradition in the earlytimes of the Karenni states there was a principality led bya “Sawphya” that was under the overlordship of a Shanprince. This state finally became independent in the 18thcentury. In the 19th century theKarenni state was dividedinto five principalities (sawphyas).

10.1.1 British rule in Burma

In 1864 a Karenni prince requested the status of Britishprotectorate for his state, but the British authorities didnot show any interest. After the death of this prince in1869 his two sons renewed the petition claiming that theyfeared Burmese ambitions on their state. The British re-fused again, but agreed to arbitrate before the King ofBurma. Since the Burmese monarchy insisted in theirdemands on the Karenni territories, the British grantedrecognition to four states, Kyebogyi, Namekan (Nam-mekon), Naungpale and Bawlake, which became inde-pendent under British protection on 21 June 1875. Kan-tarawadi state, however, remained independent withoutofficial protection.[3]

TheKarenni States were recognized as tributary to BritishBurma in 1892, when their rulers agreed to accept astipend from the British government. An Assistant Su-perintendent of the Shan States was based at Loikaw asAgent of the British government. He was exercising con-trol over the local Karenni Rulers, being supervised by theSuperintendent at Taunggyi.[3] On 10 October 1922 theadministrations of the Karenni states and the Shan stateswere officially unified in order to establish the FederatedShan States,[4] under a commissioner who also adminis-

26

10.3. SEE ALSO 27

tered the Wa States. This arrangement survived the con-stitutional changes of 1923 and 1937. By the 1930s, theMawchi Mine in Bawlake was one of the most importantsources of tungsten in the world.On 27 May 1942, during World War II, nearby KengtungState was invaded and its capital captured by the ThaiPhayap Army.[5] Following a previous agreement be-tween Thai Prime Minister Plaek Phibunsongkhram andthe Japanese Empire, in December the same year the Thaiadministration occupied Kengtung and Möngpan. Theannexation by Thailand as Saharat Thai Doem northernprovince was formalised on 1 August 1943.[6] Thailandleft the territory in 1945, but officially relinquished itsclaim over Kengtung State only in 1946 as part of the con-dition for admission to the United Nations and the with-drawal of all wartime sanctions for having sided with theAxis powers.[7]

Thailand left the territory in 1945, but officially relin-quished its claim over Kantarawadi State only in 1946 aspart of the condition for admission to the United Nationsand the withdrawal of all wartime sanctions for havingsided with the Axis powers.[8]

10.1.2 Post-independence Burma

The Constitution of the Union of Burma in 1947 pro-claimed that the three Karenni States be amalgamatedinto a single constituent state of the union, calledKarenni State. It also provided for the possibility ofsecession from the Union after 10 years. In 1952, theformer Shan state of Mong Pai was added, and the wholerenamed Kayah State, possibly with the intent of drivinga wedge between the Karenni in Kayah State and the restof the Karen people in Karen State, both fighting for in-dependence.

10.2 States

There were five Karenni states, divided into two regions.

10.2.1 Western Karenni

The Western Karenni States were the four Karenni stateslocated west of the Salween River:

• Kyebogyi, 350 square miles or 910 square kilome-tres, population 9,867 in 1901.

• Bawlake, 200 square miles or 520 square kilome-tres, population 5,701 in 1901.

• Naungpale, 30 square miles or 78 square kilome-tres, population 1,265 in 1901.

• Nammekon, 50 square miles or 130 square kilome-tres, population 2,629 in 1901.

10.2.2 Kantarawadi

Kantarawadi State was also known as “Eastern Karenni”.It had an area of 2,500 square miles or 6,500 square kilo-metres and a population of 26,333 in 1901.[3] More thanhalf of its territory was located east of the Salween River,an area that was annexed by Thailand during World WarII.

10.3 See also• Princely States

• Shan States

• Red Karen

10.4 References[1] Map of Shan States c.1910

[2] Shan and Karenni States of Burma

[3] Imperial Gazetteer of India, v. 15, p. 36.

[4] “Myanmar Divisions”. Statoids. Retrieved 2009-04-10.

[5] Thailand and the Second World War at the Wayback Ma-chine (archived October 27, 2009)

[6] Shan and Karenni States of Burma

[7] David Porter Chandler & David Joel Steinberg eds. InSearch of Southeast Asia: A Modern History. p. 388

[8] David Porter Chandler & David Joel Steinberg eds. InSearch of Southeast Asia: A Modern History. p. 388

10.5 External links• The Imperial Gazetteer of India

• “Gazetteer of Upper Burma and the Shan states”

• Karenni Ethnicity

Coordinates: 18°30′N 98°00′E / 18.500°N 98.000°E

Chapter 11

Kawthoolei

Flag of Kawthoolei

Kawthoolei is the Karen name for the state that theKaren people of Myanmar have been trying to estab-lish since the late 1940s. Kawthoolei roughly approxi-mates to present-day Kayin State, although parts of theBurmese Ayeyarwady River delta with Karen popula-tions have sometimes also been claimed. Kawthoolei,as a name, was penned during the time of former Karenleader Ba U Gyi, who was assassinated around the timeof Burma’s independence from Britain. Kawthoolei hasalso been spelled ‘Kaw-thu-lay’ or ‘Kawthoolie’ with thelast syllable replacing the ‘lay’ with ‘lea.’ The name ‘Kaw-thu-lay’ was used by the Government of the Union ofBurma in drawing up its constitution which made pro-visions within a Karen State.Prior to the adoption of Kawthoolei there were a numberof other names to denote what the Karen people wouldcall a Karen state. In the early 1900s, the historical termused for a Karen land was Kaw Lah or ‘green land’ – and itis unclear as to why the new name was adopted, althoughit probably developed due to Karen political aspirationsafter the Second World War. Kawthoolei is not the onlyname used to refer to a Karen country: the Pwo Karenuse the phrase ‘Kan Su Line’, literally ‘land cool cave’.[1]

The precise meaning of Kawthoolei is disputed even bythe Karen themselves. Kawthoolei, literally means a landwithout evil in Sqaw Karen.[2] However even this trans-lation is at odds with the linguistic realities. It serves toreinforce a particular conception of Karen society and isattributed to the influence of Christian beliefs. The trans-lation as ‘a land where the Thoo Lei flower grow’ cansimilarly be misinterpreted. As one elder pointed out,the Thoo Lei flower can be found throughout the coun-try, and even in Thailand, and as such the term could be

interpreted as the Karen making a claim for Burma inits entirety, and perhaps adding even more territory. Ac-cording to Martin Smith in “Burma: Insurgency and thePolitics of Ethnicity”, Kawthoolei has a double meaning,and can also be rendered as the Land Burnt Black; hencethe land that must be fought for.

28

11.2. REFERENCES 29

11.1 See also• Karen-Ni

11.2 References[1] Languages of Security in the Asia-Pacific (March 13,

2014). “Karen – Kawthoolei”.

[2] kawthoolei.org (March 13, 2014). “About Kawthoolei”.

Chapter 12

Kayan people (Burma)

For other uses, see Kayan.The Kayan are a subgroup of the Red Karen (Karenni)

A Kayan Lahwi woman

people, a Tibeto-Burman ethnic minority of Burma(Myanmar). The Kayan consists of the following groups:Kayan Lahwi (also called Padaung, [bədàʊɴ]),Kayan Ka Khaung (Gekho), Kayan Lahta, Kayan KaNgan. Kayan Gebar, Kayan Kakhi and, sometimes, Bwepeople (Kayaw).Padaung (Yan Pa Doung) is a Shan term for the KayanLahwi (the group whose women wear the brass neckcoils). The Kayan residents in Mae Hong Son Provincein Northern Thailand refer to themselves as Kayan andobject to being called Padaung. In The Hardy Padaungs(1967) Khin Maung Nyunt, one of the first authors to

A Kayan Lahwi girl

use the term “Kayan”, says that the Padaung prefer to becalled Kayan.[1] On the other hand, Pascal Khoo Thwecalls his people Padaung in his 2002 memoir, From theLand of Green Ghosts: A Burmese Odyssey. [2]

In the late 1980s and early 1990s due to conflict withthe military regime in Burma, many Kayan tribes fled tothe Thai border area.[3] Among the refugee camps set upthere was a Long Neck section, which became a touristsite, self-sufficient on tourist revenue and not needing fi-nancial assistance.[4]

According to U Aung Roe (1993:21ss) Kayan numberabout 40,000 in Shan State (around the Pekon Townshiparea) and 20,000 in Kayah State (around Demawso andLoikaw). A 2004 estimate puts the population at approx-imately 130,000.[5] About 600 Kayan reside in the threevillages open to tourists in Mae Hong Son, or in the Ban

30

12.2. CULTURE 31

Mai Nai Soi refugee camp.

12.1 Geography

12.1.1 Present settlement of the Kayans

According to Kayan tradition the Kayan settled in the De-mawso area of Karenni State (Kayah State) in 739 AD.[6]Today they are to be found in Karenni (Kayah) Statearound Demawso and Loikow, in the southern regionof Shan State and in Mandalay’s Pyinmana and Karen’sThan Daung township.There are three Kayan villages inMae Hong Son provincein Thailand. The largest is Huay Pu Keng, on the Pairiver, close to the Thai Burma border. Huai Seau Tao isa commercial village opened in 1995. Many of the res-idents of Nai Soi Kayan Tayar moved into the Karennirefugee camp in September 2008, but a few families re-main there.Most of the Kayan people in Mae Hong Son are formerlyfrom nine villages in Karenni State. The majority arefrom Rwan Khu and Daw Kee village. The people ofHuay Pu Keng are mainly from Lay Mile village.

12.2 Culture

12.2.1 Brass coils

Women of the Kayan tribes identify themselves by theirforms of dress. Women of the Kayan Lahwi tribe arewell known for wearing neck rings, brass coils that areplaced around the neck, appearing to lengthen it. Thewomen wearing these coils are known as “giraffe women”to tourists.Girls first start to wear rings when they are around fiveyears old.[7] Over the years the coil is replaced by alonger one and more turns are added. The weight ofthe brass pushes the collar bone down and compressesthe rib cage. The neck itself is not lengthened; the ap-pearance of a stretched neck is created by the deforma-tion of the clavicle.[8] Many ideas regarding why the coilsare worn have been suggested, often formed by visit-ing anthropologists, who have hypothesized that the ringsprotected women from becoming slaves by making themless attractive to other tribes. Contrastingly it has beentheorised that the coils originate from the desire to lookmore attractive by exaggerating sexual dimorphism, aswomen have more slender necks than men. It has alsobeen suggested that the coils give the women resemblanceto a dragon, an important figure in Kayan folklore.[9] Thecoils might be meant to protect from tiger bites, perhapsliterally, but probably symbolically.[10]

Kayan women, when asked, acknowledge these ideas, and

Woman and child, 1905.

often say that their purpose for wearing the rings is cul-tural identity (one associated with beauty).

32 CHAPTER 12. KAYAN PEOPLE (BURMA)

The coil, once on, is seldom removed, as the coiling anduncoiling is a lengthy procedure. It is usually only re-moved to be replaced by a new or longer coil. The mus-cles covered by the coil become weakened. Many womenhave removed the rings for medical examinations. Mostwomen prefer to wear the rings once their clavicle hasbeen lowered, as the area of the neck and collarbone of-ten becomes bruised and discolored. Additionally, thecollar feels like an integral part of the body after ten ormore years of continuous wear.In 2006 some of the younger women in Mae Hong Sonstarted to remove their rings, either to give them the op-portunity to continue their education or in protest againstthe exploitation of their culture and the restrictions thatcame with it. In late 2008 most of the young womenwho entered the refugee camp removed their rings. Onewoman who had worn the rings for over 40 years removedthem. After removing the rings, women report discom-fort which fades after about three days. The discolorationis more persistent.The government of Burma began discouraging neck ringsas it struggled to appear more modern to the developedworld. Consequently, many women in Burma beganbreaking the tradition, though a few older women andsome of the younger girls in remote villages continued towear rings. In Thailand the practice has gained popular-ity in recent years because it draws tourists who bring rev-enue to the tribe and to the local businessmen who run thevillages and collect an entry fee of 250B per person. TheKarenni National People’s Liberation Front (KNPLF), anarmed cease-fire group, have made attempts to invite theKayan to return to Kayah State to set up their own touristvillages.In January 2008 the UNHCR expressed reservationsabout tourists visiting the Kayan villages in NorthernThailand due to the provincial government’s refusal to al-low registered Kayan refugees to take up offers of reset-tlement in developing countries.[11] It is believed this pol-icy was linked to their economic importance to the area.This policy was relaxed in late 2008 and a small groupof Kayan have left for New Zealand in August 2008.[12]Others entered the main Karenni refugee camp (which isnot open to tourists) in September 2008 and they are noweligible for resettlement.

12.2.2 Traditional religion

• Kay Htoe Boe poles.

• The Pwai dance.

• Following the pwai dance the women sprinkle themen with water using eugenia leaves.

• Fowl bone prognostication.

The Kayans’ traditional religion is called Kan Khwan, andhas been practiced since the people migrated from Mon-

golia during the Bronze Age.[13] It includes the belief thatthe Kayan people are the result of a union between a fe-male dragon and a male human/angel hybrid.[14]

The major religious festival is the 3-day Kay Htein Bofestival, which commemorates the belief that the creatorgod gave form to the world by planting a small post inthe ground. During this festival, held in late March orearly April, a Kay Htoe Boe pole is erected and partici-pants dance around the pole.[13][15] This festival is held tovenerate the eternal god and creator messengers, to givethanks for blessings during the year, to appeal for forgive-ness, and pray for rain. It is also an opportunity for Kayanfrom different villages to come together to maintain thesolidarity of the tribe.The Kayan have a strong belief in augury and nothing isdone without reference to some form of divination, in-cluding breaking thatch grass, but most importantly con-sulting the chicken bones.[16]

In present times the annual KayHtein Bo festival is alwaysaccompanied by a reading of the chicken bones to predictthe year ahead. Fowl bone prognostication can be wit-nessed in the Kayan villages in Thailand’s Mae Hong Sonprovince during the annual festival and during “CleansingCeremonies” which are held when a family has encoun-tered ill fortune. Dreams are also used to make predic-tions.

• Cleansing Ceremony Rituals

•

•

•

12.2.3 Current religious practices

Although many of the Kayan still participate in these tra-ditional festivals, in the 19th Century Italian missionariesworked amongst them for many years and today the ma-jority of Kayan and Kayaw people are Roman Catholics.Statistics published in 2004 lists 306 Kayan villages, outof which 209 are Roman Catholic, 19 Kan Khwan, 32Baptist and 44 Buddhist, of which 2 belong to the Bya-maso civil society organization.[5]

• Catholic First Communion

•

•

•

12.3 See also• Ndebele people of South Africa - An African tribewith a similar practice.

12.5. EXTERNAL LINKS 33

• The Kayan of Borneo share the name but are notrelated and do not have the same customs.

12.4 References[1] Rastorfer, Jean-Marc (1994), On the Development of

Kayah and Kayan National Identity, Bangkok: SoutheastAsian Publishing House

[2] Pascal Khoo Thwe, From the Land of Green Ghosts: ABurmese Odyssey (2002), ISBN 0-00-711682-9 Googlebooks

[3] Thai Burma Border Consortium / A brief history of theThailand Burma border situation

[4] Burmese Border Consortium Relief programme: Januaryto June 2003

[5] Eden Phan, Khon (2004), The Narratives, Beliefs and Cus-toms of the Kayan People, Mae Hong Son: Kayan Literacyand Culture Committee

[6] Eden Phan, Khon (2004), The Narratives, Beliefs and Cus-toms of the Kayan People, Mae Hong Son: Kayan Literacyand Culture Committee

[7] Mirante, Edith T. (1994), Burmese Looking Glass: A Hu-man Rights Adventure and a Jungle Revolution, NewYork:Atlantic Monthly Press

[8] Keshishian, J.M. (1979), Anatomy of a Burmese BeautySecret (155.6 ed.), Washington: National Geographic, pp.798–801

[9] Mirante, Edith T. (September 2006), The Dragon Moth-ers Polish their Metal Coils, Guernica Magazine, retrieved2009-01-01

[10] Mirante, Edith T. (January 1990), Hostages to Tourism,Cultural Survival Quarterly (14.1)

[11] BBC news / Burmese women in Thai 'human zoo'

[12] huaypukeng.com

[13] “Religion”. Huay Pu Keng. Retrieved 2013-08-04.

[14] Virtua Design. “The Dragon Mothers Polish their MetalCoils by Edith Mirante - Guernica / A Magazine of Art &Politics”. Guernicamag.com. Retrieved 2013-08-04.

[15] “Les peuples oubliés”. Blogg.org. 2007-08-26. Retrieved2013-08-04.

[16] Manna, Padre Paolo (1902), The Ghekhu-Karen Tribe ofEastern Burma, S. Guiseppe Pontificial Printing

12.5 External links

• Padaung, a subgroup of Karen, The Peoples of theWorld Foundation

• Huay Pu Keng: Long Neck Village Website aboutthis Kayan village in Thailand contains informationon Kayan history, religion, and culture

• Karenni Homeland Current news from KarenniState

• Burmese women in Thai “human zoo” BBCNews ar-ticle

• Video showing “neck stretching” over time

• Flicker Group: Long-Necked Karén

• Hostage to Tourism Article by Edith T. Mirante.Need to create account to view article.

• French Language page with introduction, notes andbibliography of Kayah, Kayan, Karenni et YangDaeng by Jean-Marc Rastorfer

Chapter 13

Pa-O National Organization

The Pa-O National Organization (Burmese:) is a political organization

of the Pa-O people in Burma, with the Pa-O NationalArmy as its military wing. In 1990, the Pa-O NationalArmy had about 500-600 men.The PNO signed a cease-fire agreement with the junta onApril 11, 1991. The PNO controls Special Region-6 insouthern Shan State and has been granted a number ofbusiness concessions.

13.1 See also• United Wa State Army

• Aung Kham Hti

13.2 Bibliography• The rise and fall of the Communist Party of Burma(CPB) By Bertil Lintner

• The Pa-O: Rebels and Refugees. Russ Christensenand Sann Kyaw ISBN–10: 974-9575-93-8

ISBN–13: 978-974-9575-93-2

13.3 External links• Pa-O National Organization

• Pa-O National Organization (PNO)

• Pa-O National organization (PNO) presents its pol-icy, stance and work programmes

• A brief history of the Pa-O road to revolution

34

Chapter 14

Red Karen

Red Karen (Kayah) also known as Karenni, is a sub-group of the Karen people, a Sino-Tibetan people livingmostly in Kayah State of Burma.According to a 1983 census, the Red Karens (Karenni)consist of the following groups: Kayah, Geko (Kayan KaKhaung, Gekho, Gaykho), Geba (Kayan Gebar, Gaybar),Padaung (Kayan Lahwi), Bres, Manu-Manaus (Manu-manao), Yintale, Yinbaw, Bwe, Shan and Pao.[1] Severalof the groups (Geko, Gebar, Padaung) belong to Kayan,a subgroup of Red Karen.

14.1 Karen-Ni

Karen-Ni was the country of the Red Karens, a collec-tion of small states, formally independent, which had feu-dal ties to Burma. The states were bounded on the northby the Shan states of Mong Pai, Hsatung and Mawkmai;on the east, they were bounded by Thailand; on the southby the Papun district of Lower Burma; and on the westa stretch of mountainous country, inhabited by the Breand various other small tribes. During British rule inBurma, Karen-Ni had a guard of military police, whichwas posted at the village of Loikaw.

14.2 Karenni States

Main article: Karenni States

The Karenni States is the name formerly given to agroup of states that included Kantarawadi (3,161 squaremiles or 8,190 square kilometres, pop (1931) 30,677),Kyebogyi (790 square miles or 2,000 square kilometres,pop (1931) 14,282) and Bawlake (568 square miles or1,470 square kilometres, pop (1931) 13,802), locatedsouth of the Federated Shan States and east of BritishBurma.The British government recognized and guaranteed theindependence of the Karenni States in an 1875 treaty withBurmese King Mindon Min, by which both parties rec-ognized the area as belonging neither to Burma nor toGreat Britain. Consequently, the Karenni States were

never fully incorporated into British Burma. The KarenniStates were recognized as tributary to British Burma in1892, when their rulers agreed to accept a stipend fromthe British government. In the 1930s, the Mawchi Minein Bawlake was the most important source of tungsten inthe world. The Constitution of the Union of Burma in1947 proclaimed that the three Karenni States be amal-gamated into a single constituent state of the union, calledKarenni State. It also provided for the possibility of se-cession from the Union after 10 years. In 1952, the for-mer Shan state of Mong Pai was added, and the wholerenamed Kayah State, possibly with the intent of drivinga wedge between the Karenni (in Kayah State) and therest of the Karen people (in Karen State), both fightingfor independence.

14.3 Images

14.4 Kayah Traditions

Kayah Tribes and Dresses

14.5 Notes[1] Karenni Homeland

14.6 External links• karennihomeland.com

• huaypukeng.com

• karennisu.org

• karenni.net

• knrf.org

•

This article incorporates text from a publication nowin the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911).

35

36 CHAPTER 14. RED KAREN

Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge Univer-sity Press.

Chapter 15

S'gaw people

The S'gaw or Paganyaw are an ethnic group of Burmaand Thailand. They speak the S'gaw Karen language.

15.1 Classification

The S'gaw are a Karen ethnic group, part of the largerTibeto-Burman ethnicity. The sub group of S'gaw Karenare Paku Karen, Bwe Karen, Monaypwar Karen andMobwar Karen.

15.2 Geographic distribution• Population of 1,848,000 in Burma

• Population of 375,000 in Thailand

• Population of 900 in India

15.3 Religion• 46% of the S'gaw in Burma are Christian; 45% ad-here to ethnic religions

• 20% of the S'gaw in Thailand are Christian

• 61% of the S'gaw in India are Buddhist; 38% areChristian

37

Chapter 16

Western Karenni

The rulers of Bawlake, Kantarawadi and Kyebogyi (standing inthe back row), at the Delhi Durbar in 1903

Western Karenni was the collective name for thefour Karenni States located west of the Salween River:Bawlake, Nammekon, Naungpale, and Kyebogyi. On21 June 1875, the government of British India and kingMindon of Burma signed a treaty recognizing the inde-pendence of Western Karenni. On 23 January 1892,Western Karenni was incorporated into British India asa protectorate.[1]

16.1 History

In 1864 a Karenni prince requested the status of Britishprotectorate for his state, but the British authorities didnot show any interest. After the death of this prince in1869 his two sons renewed the petition claiming that theyfeared Burmese ambitions on their state. The British re-fused again, but agreed to arbitrate before the King ofBurma. Since the Burmese monarchy insisted in theirdemands on the Karenni territories, the British grantedrecognition to four states, Kyebogyi, Namekan (Nam-mekon), Naungpale and Bawlake, which became inde-pendent under British protection on 21 June 1875.[2]

16.2 States

16.2.1 Kyebogyi

Kyebogyi had an area of 350 square miles or 910 squarekilometres and a population of 9,867 in 1901.[2] Therulers bore the title of Myoza.[3]

Myozas

• 1845 - 1890 ....

• 1890 - 27 Jan 1908 Hkun U (b. 18.. - d. 1908)

• 12 Jun 1908 - 1933 Hkun Sao (b. 1857 - d. 1933)

• 1933 - 1948 Vacant

16.2.2 Bawlake

Bawlake had an area of 200 square miles or 520 squarekilometres and a population of 5,701 in 1901.[2] Therulers bore the title of Myoza after 1892.[3]

Rulers

• 1810? - 1850? Po Bya Hla

• 1850? - 1872 La Kye

• 1872 - 23 Jan 1892 Paban (b. 1857 - d. 1916)

Myozas

• 23 Jan 1892 - 1916 Paban (s.a.)

• 1916 - 1948 Hkun Nge (b. 1894 - d. 19..)

16.2.3 Naungpale

Naungpale had an area of 30 square miles or 78 squarekilometres and a population of 1,265 in 1901.[2] Therulers bore the title of Myoza after 1892.[3]

Rulers

• 1845 - 23 Jan 1892 ....

38

16.4. REFERENCES 39

Myozas

• 23 Jan 1892 - 1897 ....

• 8 Jul 1897 - 1916 Hkun Che (b. 1857 - d. 1916)

• 1916 - 19.. ....

16.2.4 Nammekon

Nammekon had an area of 50 square miles or 130 squarekilometres and a population of 2,629 in 1901.[2] Therulers bore the title of Myoza.[3]

Myozas

• c.1860 - 1892 Po Bya

• 1892 - 1899 Vacant?

• 1899 - 1902 Hkun Baw (b. 1870 - d. af.1902)

• 1903 - 19.. Pra To (b. 1863 - d. 19..)

16.3 See also• Kantarawadi, also known as “Eastern Karenni”.

16.4 References[1] Khu Oo Reh (October 2006). “Highlights in Karenni His-

tory to 1948”. Retrieved 19 December 2010.

[2] Imperial Gazetteer of India, v. 15, p. 36.

[3] Ben Cahoon (2000). “World Statesmen.org: Shan andKarenni States of Burma”. Retrieved 7 July 2014.

Chapter 17

Saw Ba U Gyi

In this Burmese name, Saw is an honorific.

Saw Ba U Gyi (Burmese: [sɔ́ ba̰ ʔú dʑí];1905 – 12 August 1950) was the first President of theKaren National Union.[1] Ba U Gyi graduated with aBachelor’s degree from Rangoon University in 1925 andstudied law in England, passing the English bar in 1927.[2]From 1937 to 1939, he served as theMinister of Revenueof British Burma, and fromFebruary to April 1947, as theMinister for Transport and Communications of Burma.[2]He was killed in ambush by the Burmese Army on 12 Au-gust 1950.[2]

Ba U Gyi’s four principles are still held as the guid-ing Principles of the Revolution of the Karen NationalUnion:[3]

1. Surrender is out of the question

2. The recognition of the Karen State must be com-pleted.

3. We shall retain our arms.

4. We shall decide our own political destiny.

17.1 References[1] “Our Fallen Heroes”. Karen National Union. Retrieved

23 October 2012.

[2] Keenan, Paul (March 2008). “Saw Ba U Gyi - Voice ofthe Revolution”. Karen History and Culture PreservationSociety. Retrieved 23 October 2012.

[3] “Objectives”. Karen National Union. 23 November 2009.Retrieved 23 October 2012.

40

Chapter 18

Louisa Benson Craig

Louisa Charmaine Benson Craig (sometimes speltLuisa Benson; 10 March 1941 – 2 February 2010) wasa Burmese-born two-time beauty pageant winner andKaren rebel leader of Portuguese Jewish and Karen an-cestry who was particularly known for becoming Burma’sfirst Miss Universe contestant in 1956 [1] and again MissBurma in 1958.[2]

After American schooling she returned to Karen andmarried Lin Htin, a commander of the Karen NationalLiberation Army(KNLA) in 1964.[3] After her husband’sdeath in 1965, widowed Louisa led the Fifth Brigade, butfell out with the Karen National Union leadership follow-ing a power struggle with Bo Mya.[4]

As a “MostWanted” independence warrior leader, Louisawas urged by her people in 1967 to leave to spare herlife; and she emigrated to the United States by marrying aMayflower descendant of Massachusetts’ historic Gover-nor Bradford and an aunt who started Twinings Americantea company, Glenn Campbell Craig, former classmate ofher youthful overseas studies at Tufts University,[4] whoreconnected with her as a U.S. Naval officer requestingassignment to Asian waters near Karen.After emigrating, Louisa Benson Craig obtained a mas-ter’s degree in international affairs at Columbia Univer-sity and worked to advocate for Burmese democracy andresettlement efforts for Burmese refugees in the UnitedStates.[5] In 2004, she was named a plaintiff in a landmarkhuman rights case against Unocal, which was operating inBurma, for profiting from the Burmese military’s allegedhuman rights abuses by operating the Yadana gas field.[6]

18.1 Family

Louisa’s father, Saw Benson (also known as Moses Ben-Zion Koder), was an entrepreneur descended from theKoder family, a prominent Cochin Jewish business clanin South India's Cochin (now Kochi) on his paternal side,and the Leynado family, a Sephardic Jewish family on hismaternal side.[1] He converted to Christianity and in 1939married an ethnic Karen woman, Naw Chit Khin.[1]

Louisa bore three children to Glenn Craig, who becamean entrepreneur helping found an international school

publications enterprise out of California.[5] Their daugh-ter perpetuating Louisa’s middle name, Charmaine Craig,is an actress who, like her husband Andrew Winer, is anovelist and university professor of literature.[7] Louisaand Glenn’s second daughter is a physician, and their sonis a musician who also works in public radio. Karen rel-atives of Louisa also emigrated to California.

18.2 In Perpetuity

Louisa’s legacy and memory live on not only as a heroineamong the Karen people but also in continued awareness-raising by others moved by Karen courage and tenac-ity to hold onto ancient independence, history, culture,and identity. Most recently world attention has turned toKaren since quinine has become no longer effective therein treatment of malaria, with UCLA working on a syn-thetic quinine, and additional natural plant sources likedogwood for malaria treatment should be explored too.

18.3 References[1] Cernea, Ruth Fredman (2007). Almost Englishmen:

Baghdadi Jews in British Burma. Lexington Books. pp.117–118. ISBN 9780739116463.

[2] Naw Louisa “Benson, Naw Louisa”. Museum of KarenHistory and Culture. Karen History and Culture Preserva-tion Society. 2003. Retrieved 9 April 2012.

[3] Saw Yan Naing (4 February 2010). “Louisa Benson CraigDies Aged 69”. The Irrawaddy. Retrieved 8 April 2012.

[4] Tzamg Yawnghwe (1987). The Shan of Burma: Memoirsof a Shan Exile. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. pp.202–203. ISBN 9789971988623.

[5] “Naw Louisa Benson Craig ( ) ".LA Organizers for Burma. 2 March 2010. Retrieved 9April 2012.

[6] “Former actress joins lawsuit”. AP. 1 June 2004. Re-trieved 9 April 2012.

[7] “About”. Charmaine Craig. Retrieved 9 April 2012.

41

Chapter 19

Smith Dun

General Smith Dun (November 11, 1906 – 1979) wasthe commander-in-chief of the Burmese Army from Jan-uary 4, 1948 – February 1, 1949.Dun enlisted in the Indian Army on 8 November 1924,initially with the 10th battalion 20th Burma Rifles andafter training served with the 2nd battalion 20th BurmaRifles, seeing service in Burma during the rebellion of1930-32.He was commissioned a Viceroy’s Commissioned Offi-cer on the 10th January 1931. He attended the KitchenerCollege, Nowgong and from there was later selected toattend the Indian Military Academy and earned the firstSword of Honour which is given to the best cadet of eachyear’s class. He was commissioned on 1 February 1935,his senority later being antedated to 4 February 1934. Fora year after commissioning he was attached to the 2ndbattalion theKingsOwnYorkshire Light Infantry at Agra.On 24 February 1936 he was admitted to the IndianArmyand appointed to the 2nd battalion the 1st Punjab Regi-ment on 9 March 1936. He was promoted Lieutenant on4 May 1936. His battalion was involved in fighting on theNorth West Frontier during 1936-37.He was serving attached to the Burma Military Policewhen the Japanese invaded in 1941. For his services onthe retreat from Burma he was Mentioned in Despatches(London Gazette 28 October 1942). He attended theStaff College at Quetta and then saw further service inBurma, receiving another Mention in Despatches (Lon-don Gazette 5 April 1945) and later was awarded theMilitary Cross (London Gazette 17 January 1946) as atemporary Major attached the Burma Intelligence Corps.In a move to build confidence in the Burmese Union thatwould include all ethnic groups, Dun, a Karen, was ap-pointed commander-in-chief of the Burmese army andof the police forces when Burma gained its independencefrom Britain following World War II. However, in 1949when the Karen began their war for independence fromBurma, Dun was removed from his position. Dun wasa loyal leader of the Burmese Army while maintaining astrong sense of his Karen ethnicity. Known as the “four-foot colonel” for his small stature, he kept his Karen sol-diers disciplined although suspicion of his ethnic rootslingered even after his dismissal.

19.1 See also• Indian Army

• Military of Myanmar

19.2 References• Dun, Smith. Memoirs of the Four-Foot Colonel.Ithica, NY: Cornell Southeast Asia Program, 1980.

42

Chapter 20

Johnny and Luther Htoo

Johnny Htoo and Luther Htoo{{[pronounced 'too'. 'H'is silent.]}} (born circa 1988) are twin brothers whojointly led the God’s Army guerrilla group – a splintergroup of Karen National Union – in Myanmar (Burma)during the late 1990s.

20.1 Formation of God’s Army(1997)

The Htoo twins were from an area of eastern Burmapopulated by the Karen ethnic group. The Karen andBurmese army had fought at various times for over fiftyyears, but in the early 90s the Burmese army launcheda major operation to secure the route of an oil pipelinethrough the area. In March 1997, a local pastor broughtthe two illiterate nine-year-olds to the local military chiefand said the Lord had spoken to them and they would savethe Karen people.[1][2] According to the legend amongfollowers, the twins then rallied defenders of their vil-lage by shouting “God’s Army!", leading them to a victoryover Burmese troops.[3] Various legends claimed that thebrothers had numerous magical powers, including invul-nerability to bullets and mines and that they could handout magical bullets. Supposedly, they could kill by point-ing a rifle at the ground and concentrating. One taleclaims that Johnny turned himself into an old man andback when bathing in a river. The legend of the boyswas embraced by locals who viewed the existing KarenNational Union as corrupt and ineffective. A new rebelgroup called God’s Army of the Holy Mountain, or God’sArmy for short, was thus formed under the nominal lead-ership of the Htoo twins.[1]

20.2 Worldwide attention (1999-2000)

God’s Army was situated in mountainous rainforestsalong the border between Burma and Thailand.[3] Theywere a band of Christian guerrillas who maintained anaustere lifestyle, including abstinence from sexual inter-course, alcohol, milk, eggs and pork. The boys, called

“Bu Lu” and “Bu Joh” by their followers, were both chainsmokers and were said to know the Bible by heart al-though they had never studied it.In October 1999, a group calling themselves VigorousBurmese Student Warriors seized the Burmese embassyin Bangkok and the situation ended with their departure,at which point they were taken in by God’s Army.[4]

The Htoos came to worldwide attention in January 2000when 10 members of God’s Army seized a hospital inRatchaburi, Thailand.[5] The group held 700 to 800 pa-tients and staff members hostage for 22 hours. They de-manded the Thai government stop shelling Karen posi-tions in Burma and treatment for their wounded. Thaisecurity forces stormed the hospital, killing all 10 of thegunmen.[3] A photograph taken by Associated Press pho-tographer Apichart Weerawong of a long-haired Johnnyposing next to his tougher-looking, cigar-puffing brotherwas circulated around the world after the hospital raid.After the raid, God’s Army were strenuously pursued bythe Tatmadaw (Burmese armed forces) and shunned byother Karen rebels. Luther claimed at the time he had250,000 invisible soldiers in his command while Johnnyhad 150,000 of his own. Their flesh-and-blood followerswas estimated to be around 500 in 1998, but gradually de-clined to between 100 and 200 men by early 2000 aftermany left to find work to support their refugee families.Meanwhile, the Burmese army had 21,000 troops in thearea.[6]

20.3 Surrender and life after God’sArmy (2001- )

The twins surrendered to Thai soldiers in January 2001and requested sanctuary. By that time the number of theirfollowers had dwindled to less than 20.[4] They repudiatedthe stories about being invulnerable but insisted that Godhad helped them to survive over the years. They werereunited with their family. In July 2006, Johnny Htoosurrendered in Burma’s military government with eightother members of God’s Army in two groups.[7]

Luther Htoo now lives in Sweden.[8] Johnny Htoo livesin a Thai refugee camp and has been attempting to go to

43

44 CHAPTER 20. JOHNNY AND LUTHER HTOO

New Zealand to join his mother and sister.[9]

20.4 References[1] “Two little boys”. The Guardian (London). 2000-07-27.

Retrieved 2012-01-16. “The cameras found the studentsin the camp of the twins, who were nine years old at thetime”

[2] “Terrorist Organization Profile: God’s Army”. NationalConsortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses toTerrorism. Retrieved 2012-01-16. “Johnny and LutherHtoo, twin brothers who were only nine years old whenthey formed the God’s Army...”

[3] “The Twin Terrors”. Time. 2000-02-07. Retrieved 2013-11-02.

[4] “Burmese Rebel Twins and 14 Followers Surrender inThailand”. NY Times. 2001-01-17. Retrieved 2013-11-02.

[5] The Washington Post. 2000-01-24 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/pmextra/jan00/24/hostage.htm |url= missing title (help).

[6] Mydans, Seth (2000-04-01). “Burmese Rebel ChiefMoreBoy Than Warrior”. NY Times. Retrieved 2013-11-02.

[7] “Myanmar Teen Rebel Leader Surrenders”. Las VegasSun. 2006-07-25. Archived from the original on 2008-01-04. Retrieved 2009-09-14.

[8] Al Jazeera news report, September 2013http://www.aljazeera.com/video/asia-pacific/2013/09/201391541541502909.html

[9] Myanmar 'God’s Army' twins reunite, seek comrades

20.5 External links• Profile: God’s Army at Bbc.co.uk

Chapter 21

Ka Hsaw Wa

Ka Hsaw Wa is a Burmese human rights activist. He isa member of the Karen indigenous group. Along withhis wife, environmental and human rights attorney KatieRedford, he is the Co-Founder and Co-Director [1] ofEarthRights International(ERI), an organization that fo-cuses on human rights in Burma and other areas “whereprotection of human rights and the environment is in-trinsically connected.”[1] Ka HsawWa and Katie Redfordhave two young children.

21.1 Biography

Ka Hsaw Wa was born under a different name, which hekeeps secret in order to protect his family in Burma. Hehas not seen his parents in over 15 years. He adoptedthe name “Ka Hsaw Wa”, which means “the White Ele-phant”, while in exile in the United States. White Ele-phants are traditionally thought of by the Karen peopleas symbolizing righteousness and strength as well as aharbinger of great positive change.Ka Hsaw Wa grew up in Burma as the son of a doc-tor and enjoyed relative economic privilege in his youth.However, when he entered college he soon became activein political causes, and quickly developed into a strongstudent leader. The Burmese government attacked thestudents brutally in 1988, killing many. Ka Hsaw Wawas captured and tortured. He then left Burma, but re-entered the country in order to participate in a lengthyphotographic campaign documenting environmental andindigenous destruction, as well as severe human rightsabuses, including starvation, systematic rape, and the de-struction of entire villages. Most of the problems he doc-umented were connected to the construction and opera-tion of a petroleum pipeline in the area of Yadana for theoil companies Unocal (U.S.-based) and Total S.A. (basedin France).Ka Hsaw Wa, Katie Redford and EarthRights launcheda federal lawsuit against Unocal, employing a uniquelegal strategy utilizing the U.S. Alien Tort Statute of1789, which says that “federal courts have jurisdictionfor torts that occur in violation of the Law of Nations,[which] includes abuses of fundamental human rights[and] genocide”,[2] in order to force the company to as-

sume responsibility for human rights abuses caused by itsactions. In the case Unocal eventually agreed to pay com-pensation to the 15 anonymous villagers who sufferedforced labor, rape, and the effects of killings.[3]

Ka Hsaw Wa continues his front-line activism, and wasfeatured in the 2006 film, Total Denial. A descriptionbased on his role in the film is as follows:

“Ka Hsaw Wa dedicated his life to hu-man rights activism, speaking fluent Englishand Burmese, dodging back and forth as heplays cat-and-mouse with the border guards,marrying another rights worker and even rais-ing a family. All the while he is fighting to liveand protect his homeland. At one point he de-scribes how he was himself tortured. When hegoes into difficult areas of the jungle, he takesa gun with a single bullet - to commit suicide ifcaptured (to avoid torture).”[4]

KaHsawWa and EarthRights are also involved in the cur-rent struggle for democracy and human rights in Burma,wherein a number of protesters, including monks, havebeen killed, and hundreds of protesters arrested. Theyare working to bring an end to the current violence againstthe people. In response to the 2007 protests, Ka HsawWahas said:

“As someone who experienced thisregime’s brutality in 1988, I am glad that thistime around, the world is watching. But thatis not enough. The international community,including multinational corporations, must actnow to prevent further bloodshed in Burma.The people have suffered profoundly for toolong — they have already sacrificed so much,and they will not stop.”

21.2 Awards and recognition

• Goldman Environmental Prize (1999)[5]

• Reebok Human Rights Award (1999)[6]

45

46 CHAPTER 21. KA HSAW WA

• Whitley Award Winner (Human Rights & the En-vironment), sponsored by Sting and Trudie Styler(2004)[7]

• Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership(2009)[8]

21.3 References[1] “Ka Hsaw Wa | EarthRights International”. Earth-

rights.org. Retrieved 2012-01-28.

[2]

[3] “Unocal Settles Rights Suit in Myanmar”. The New YorkTimes. 2004-12-14.

[4] “Total Denial (2006) - IMDb”. Uk.imdb.com. Retrieved2012-01-28.

[5] Goldman Environmental Prize (1998-07-01). “Ka HsawWa”. Goldman Prize. Retrieved 2012-01-28.

[6]

[7] “The Whitley Fund for Nature”. Whitley-award.org. Re-trieved 2012-01-28.

[8] “2009 Ramon Magsaysay Awardee - KA HSAW WA”.Rmaf.org.ph. 2009-08-31. Retrieved 2012-01-28.

21.4 External links• http://www.earthrights.org/home.html

• http://www.totaldenialfilm.com/

• http://www.theconnection.org/shows/2003/09/20030930_b_main.asp

• http://pbs.org/now/shows/345

Chapter 22

Pascal Khoo Thwe

Pascal Khoo Thwe (born 1967)[1] is a Burmese authorfrom the minority Padaung people,[2] known for his au-tobiographic writings about growing up in Burma un-der military rule.[3] His book, From the Land of GreenGhosts: A Burmese Odyssey, was awarded the KiriyamaPrize.[4]

22.1 Biography

Thwe was born in Pekon (Phekhon, Pekong, Pecong,Pékon), Shan State, Burma (Myanmar). He is the eldestof six sons and five daughters. His father died in 1996 inThailand.By a chance encounter with Dr. John Casey, a Cambridgedon, Khoo Thwe was rescued from the jungles ofBurma where he and other student refugees were fight-ing Burmese soldiers for independence. In 1991 KhooThwe enrolled in Gonville and Caius College, Cambridgewhere he received his BA in English literature in 1995.Khoo Thwe’s autobiographical book “From the Land ofGreen Ghosts” was published by Harper-Collins in 2002.He currently resides in London.

22.2 References[1] From the land of green ghosts: a Burmese odyssey p10

[2] The tablet, Volume 246, Issues 7939-7951, 2002, Page 14

[3] Myanmar (Burma) By Robert Reid, Michael Grosberg2005 Page 29

[4] Perspectives on the Novels of Rohinton Mistry By Jay-dipsinh Dodiya 2006

22.3 External links

• Pascal Khoo Thwe, From the Land of Green Ghosts:A Burmese Odyssey (2002), ISBN 0-00-711682-9

• BBC Radio 4: Taking a Stand - BBC journalist Fer-gal Keane interviews Pascal Khoo Thwe about his

life for a radio programme first broadcast on BBCRadio 4 on December 18, 2007.

47

Chapter 23

Cynthia Maung

Dr. Cynthia Maung (Burmese: [sɪɴ̀θìjàmàʊɴ]; born 6 December 1959) is a Burmese medicaldoctor who since 1989 has lived in Mae Sot, on theThai-Burmese border. An ethnic Karen, Dr. Maung leftBurma (Myanmar) after the 8888 Uprising and has sincerun a clinic treating Burmese refugees, migrants and or-phans at Mae Tao Clinic inMae Sot on the Thai-Burmeseborder, together with 100 paramedics and teachers.Maung received Southeast Asia’s Ramon MagsaysayAward for community leadership and she was listed asone of 2003 Time Magazine’s Asian Heroes. Altogethershe has received six international awards for her work. In1999, she was the first recipient of the Jonathan MannAward, sponsored by Swiss and US health organisations.Cynthia Maung has been married to Kyaw Hein since1992.[1] Together, they have two children: Nyein ChanMaung and May Thint Sin.[2]

23.1 Early life and education

Cynthia Maung was born to ethnic Karen parents MahnNyein Maung and Hla Kyi in Rangoon, and grew up inMoulmein with her parents and 6 siblings.[3] Cynthia at-tended State High School No. 4 and it was during thisperiod that political upheaval and the student movementbegan to cause disruptions to the education system inBurma. Maung found that many of her friends were drop-ping out of school, as they needed to work in order tomake a little money to assist their family.In 1977, the Burmese government began to make changesto the educational system which affected universities andcolleges, and there were more disruptions to the schoolyear. Maung finished high school this year but had towait for 10 months before being able to enter the regionalcollege where she was required to spend two years beforeentering medical school. A further 10 months betweenthe regional college and medical school [15] meant that itwas 1980 before she was able to commence her medicalstudies.

23.2 Medical career

After medical school, Maung undertook a one-year in-ternship at the Mawlamyaing General Hospital. It wasduring this time that Maung began to realise how poorsome people were and how much they had to sacrifice inorder to get medical care. Many people sold their homes,property and land or animals so that a family membercould receivemedical assistance. But still they had to pur-chase their own supplies such as soap, blades and dress-ings if they required surgery. Equipment was old and of-ten broken, and items such as syringes were repeatedlyused.From there she went to work in a private clinic in Basseinin the delta area of Burma. It was during this time thatthe Burmese government decided to change the monetarysystem. Some of the currency became invalid and manypeople lost their life savings. This caused suffering formany people and especially for students and the poor.Some schools closed down and the student movement be-came stronger. Maung’s mother became at this time andso she moved back to Moulmein to help care for her andto be close to her family. In 1987, Maung started workingin a clinic in Eindu Village in Karen State. The village,which was on the main transit route between Hpa-An andMyawaddy was made up of three main ethnic groups: thePa-Owho earned their living mainly by weaving, theMonwho ran the small shops and businesses, and the Karenwho made a small living from farming and agriculture.Living for all of these people was difficult and they allstruggled to survive on a daily basis. Maung realised howpoor the people were, how little they had and watchedas they were forced into working for the military as sol-diers and porters. Many village children were not ableto attend school and from necessity helped the military inorder to make a small amount of money so that they couldsurvive. Taxation was high and diseases such as Tuber-culosis widespread. The village had one small hospitalbut during her stay there was a doctor present for only2–3 months and there were no medicine or supplies withwhich to treat the people.During 1988 the pro-democracy movement and demon-strations increased. Maung joined up with other villagersand high school and university students who had returned

48

23.3. HEALTH SERVICES 49

to the village. They tried to work together with similargroups from other parts of the country to bring about pos-itive change in Burma. There was a lot of tension, andparents were worried about their children and their safety.Communication and transportation avenues were cut offand the price of rice and commodities went higher andhigher. There was confusion and fear among the people.On 19 September 1988 the military seized power, manyactivists disappeared, fled the country, or were forced togo into hiding. Many thousands of people moved quicklyto the Thai–Burma border. On 21 September Dr. Cyn-thia and fourteen of her colleagues decided it was timefor them to go also. With few provisions or personalbelongings, they fled through the jungle for seven days.They travelled mainly at night and as they passed throughremote villages, where the people had never seen healthworkers or had access to a hospital, they tried to treat thelocal people suffering from disease and injury with thelimited supplies that they carried.

23.2.1 Mae Tao Clinic

On arrival in Thailand, Dr. Maung and her friendsstopped at Mae La, opposite Be Claw refugee camp inTha Song Yars district.[4] Here Maung worked at a smallhospital treating those fleeing the fighting. There was alot of confusion as thousands of people tried to find theirfriends and families. There were many people with manydifferent political ideas, and illnesses such as malariawere rife. Later, Maung moved to Hway Ka Loke refugeecamp and it was while she was here that she made con-tact with Karen leaders responsible for student affairs andwith local Thai authorities and church groups who weresympathetic to the plight of these people. Together, theytried to set up some systems to lessen the confusion and tobring a little order to the situation in the area. In Novem-ber 1988, Maung moved to Mae Sot. She wanted toset up a centre for students needing somewhere to stayor requiring referral for further medical care. Mae Sothad a hospital where this could be done and from thistime the Clinic began to develop a referral system withthe local hospital which continues today. In February1989, she was offered a dilapidated building with baredirt floors on the outskirts of Mae Sot. Here, Dr. Cyn-thia went to work. Her makeshift clinic had few suppliesand money. She improvised by sterilizing her few instru-ments in a rice cooker and solicited medicine and foodfromCatholic relief workers working in the area. She andher companions lived simply and worked hard to treat theincreasing number of patients coming to the clinic withmalaria, respiratory disease and diarrhea as well as gun-shot wounds and land mine injuries. Malaria cases arestill one of the most common diseases treated by the MaeTao Clinic. As the years have passed, the type of patientattending the clinic has also changed. In the beginning, itwas mainly students and young people escaping the fight-ing. Gradually, migrant workers began to come to the

area in an effort to find work and money for their familiesat home. As time passed, their wives and families joinedthem. Today, there are also many children and adoles-cents who are dropping out of school and need a placeof safety. As the population changes, so do the medicalneeds of those that the clinic serves. Today, one of thehighest patient loads is in Reproductive Health and asso-ciated areas. Each year, over 2,700 babies are deliveredat the clinic. The clinic’s facilities and activities continueto grow. Currently, between 400 - 500 people on aver-age come to the clinic each day, and there is a staff ofabout 700 providing comprehensive health services andchild protection services. Total caseload exceeds 115,000cases annually with a client number of over 75,000 peryear.

23.3 Health services

Mae Tao Clinic provides inpatient and outpatient med-ical care for adults, children, reproductive health clientsand surgical service patients.[5] Other services include eyecare, dental care, laboratory and blood bank services,prosthetics and rehabilitation, voluntary counseling andtesting for HIV and counseling services. Severe cases(less than 1%) are referred to Mae Sot Hospital.[5] An-tiretroviral treatment and prevention of mother to childtransmission of HIV is also conducted in collaborationwith Mae Sot Hospital. Since the establishment of theClinic, Thai Ministry of Public Health, Mae Sot Hospitaland Mae Tao Clinic share information and experiencesand have developed a positive working relationship. TheClinic also supports small satellite clinics set up in Burma,particularly in the IDP areas, to assist those who cannotreach the Clinic.

23.4 Awards

• 2013 - Sydney Peace Prize

• 2012 - National Endowment for Democracy's 2012Democracy Award [6]

• 2009 - Inspiration Model Award from “Khon KhonKhon”, Thai Television Programme [7]

• 2008 - Catalonia International Prize along with DawAung San Suu Kyi [8]

• 2007 - Asia Democracy and Human Rights Award(Taiwan Foundation for Democracy) [9]

• 2007 -World’s Children’s Prize for the Rights of theChild Honorary Award (Children’s World Associa-tion, Sweden) [10]

• 2005 - Nominated as part of the 1,000 WomenNobel Peace Prize Nomination [11]

50 CHAPTER 23. CYNTHIA MAUNG

• 2005 - Unsung Heroes of Compassion Award fromthe Dalai Lama and Wisdom in Action

• 2005 - The Eighth Global Concern for Human LifeAward

• 2005 - Included in Time Magazine’s November Ar-ticle on 18 Global Health Heroes [12]

• 2002 - Magsaysay Award for community leadership[13]

• 2001 - Foundation for Human Rights in Asia SpecialAward

• 2001 - Van Heuven Goedhart Award• 1999 - Jonathon Mann Health and Human RightsAward [14]

• 1999 - American Women’s Medical AssociationPresident’s Award

• 1999 - John Humphrey Freedom Award[15]

23.5 References[1] “A Journey of the Heart”. Seattle Times. Retrieved 15

April 2012.

[2] “Cynthia Maung (1959 - )". Honour with Books. HKULibraries. Retrieved 15 April 2012.

[3] “Biography of Cynthia Maung”. 2002 Ramon MagsaysayAward for Community Leadership. 2002. Retrieved 15April 2012.

[4] http://maetaoclinic.org/wp-content/uploads/pdf/mtc%2020%20yrs.pdf

[5] http://maetaoclinic.org/wp-content/uploads/pdf/mtc_annual_report_2009.pdf

[6] http://cpintl.org/news/dr-cynthia-maung-receives-us-democracy-award

[7] http://www.tvburabha.com/tvb/special/iframeact091106.asp

[8] http://www.gencat.cat/pic/eng/index_2008.htm

[9] http://www.tfd.org.tw/english/HTML/ADHRA_2007.html

[10] http://www.worldschildrensprize.com/prizelaurates/page.html?pid=1229

[11] http://word.world-citizenship.org/wp-archive/385

[12] http://www.time.com/time/asia/2003/heroes/cynthia_maung.html. Missing or empty |title= (help)

[13] http://www.rmaf.org.ph/Awardees/Citation/CitationMaungCyn.htm

[14] http://www.globalhealth.org/publications/article.php3?id=161

[15] “John Humphrey Freedom Award 2009”. Rights &Democracy. 2010. Retrieved 11 May 2011.

23.6 External links• Seattle Times biography

• University of Washington

*Mae Tao Clinic Website

• Dr. Cynthia’s Mae Tao Clinic Home Page

• Dr. Cynthia and Mae Tao Clinic Blog-Chinese

• Advice For Action Freedom Collection interview

• Cynthia Maung Freedom Collection interviews

23.7 AboutMae Tao Clinic and Dr.Cynthia Maung

• From Rice Cooker to Autoclave at Dr. Cynthia’sMae Tao Clinic: Twenty Years of Health, HumanRights and Community Development in theMidst ofWar: http://maetaoclinic.org/wp-content/uploads/pdf/mtc%2020%20yrs.pdf

23.8 Research• “Community-based assessment of human rights ina complex humanitarian emergency: the Emer-gency Assistance Teams-Burma and Cyclone Nar-gis” by Voravit Suwanvanichkij, Noriyuki Mu-rakamil, Catherine I Lee, Jen Leigh, Andrea LWirtz, Brock Daniels, Mahn Mahn, Cynthia Maungand Chris Beyrer: http://www.conflictandhealth.com/content/4/1/8

• “Mobile Obstetrics Project Improves Health ofMothers in Eastern Burma” Mullany et al., (August2010): http://www.jhsph.edu/publichealthnews/press_releases/2010/mullany_burma_mom_project.html

• “After the Storm: Voices from the Delta” byVoravit Suwanvanichkij, Mahn Mahn, CynthiaMaung, Brock Daniels, Noriyuki Murakami,Andrea Wirtz and Chris Beyrer (February 2009)http://www.jhsph.edu/humanrights/locations/asia/BurmaCyclone.html

• “Access To Essential Maternal Health Inter-ventions and Human Rights Violations amongVulnerable Communities in Eastern Burma” byLuke C. Mullany, Catherine I. Lee, Lin Yone,Palae Paw, Eh Kalu Shwe Oo, Cynthia Maung,Thomas J. Lee and Chris Beyrer (December 2008):http://www.burmalibrary.org/docs6/Access_To_Essential_Maternal_Health.pdf

23.8. RESEARCH 51

• “Working our Way Back Home: Fertility and Preg-nancy Loss on the Thai-Burmese Border” by Cyn-thia Maung and Suzanne Belton (December 2005)http://www.ibiblio.org/obl/docs3/OurWay.pdf

Chapter 24

Bo Mya

In this Burmese name, Bo is an honorific.

Bo Mya (Burmese: [bò mja̰]; bornHtee Moo Kee;20 January 1927 – 23 December 2006) was a Karen rebelleader born in Papun District, which is in present-dayKaren State, Myanmar. He was a long-standing chairmanof the Karen National Union (KNU), a political organisa-tion of the Karen people, from 1976 to 2000. He steppeddown to become vice-chairman in 2004, and retired in2004 from all public offices, due to poor health.Bo Mya was among a significant number of Karens whojoined the British — specifically in Bo Mya’s case, Force136 — during World War II, with whom he fought theJapanese from the East Dawna hills in 1944 to 1945.After the Karens declared independence from Burma in1949, Bo Mya quickly rose to a position of pre-eminencein the Karen movement, earning a reputation as a hardand ruthless operator. Based at Manerplaw (“victoryfield”) close to the Thai-Burma border, the KNU underhis control, and its military wing the Karen National Lib-eration Army (KNLA), was probably the most successfulof the ethnic rebel organisations fighting Rangoon in the1970s and 1980s.But by the mid-1990s, the tide was turning against him.A devout Christian of the Seventh-day Adventist Church,Bo Mya had always risked antagonising elements fromwithin the predominantly Karen Buddhist and animistKNLA ranks. Although his defenders say he treated bothChristians and Buddhists equally, the fact that the top po-sitions of the KNU were filled almost entirely by Chris-tians seemed to confirm the impression that he promotedthe minority Christians’ interests at the expense of thoseof the Buddhists and animists.In late 1994, a group of KNLA soldiers broke away fromthe main army and formed the Democratic Karen Bud-dhist Army (DKBA). They allied themselves with theBurmese military, and led Burmese troops into Maner-plaw in December 1994, leading to its capture — thebiggest single setback to the Karens in their post-war his-tory.Since then, the KNU and KNLA’s effectiveness has grad-ually diminished. This was demonstrated at the beginningof 2004 when Bo Mya travelled to Yangon (Rangoon),

his first visit to the capital in 50 years, to hold peace talkswith Khin Nyunt, who was Prime Minister at the time.On 23 December 2006, Bo Mya died in a hospital in MaeSot, Thailand, near the eastern border of Myanmar. Hehad heart disease and diabetes and was unable to walk forthree years before his death.

24.1 References[1] “Bo Mya, 79; longtime leader of Myanmar guerrilla

group”. Associated Press (Los Angeles Times). 25 De-cember 2006. Retrieved 16 April 2012.

• Smith, Martin. Burma: Insurgency and the Politicsof Ethnicity

• Paung, *Shah (2006-12-24). “Renowned KarenRebel Leader Dead”. The Irrawaddy. Retrieved2006-12-25.

• South, Ashley (December 2006). “Bo Mya-Life-long revolutionary”. The Irrawaddy. Archived fromthe original on 2007-01-08. Retrieved 2006-12-25.

• “Myanmar rebel leader dies after long illness”.Reuters. 2006-12-24. Retrieved 2006-12-25.

• Saw Kapi (2006-12-25). “Obituary - Saw Bo Mya:A symbol of resistance”. Mizzima News. Retrieved2006-12-26.

52

Chapter 25

Nant Bwa Bwa Phan

In this Burmese name, Nant is an honorific.

Nant Bwa Bwa Phan is the United Kingdom representa-tive of the Karen National Union, a political organizationrepresenting the Karen ethnic people of Burma.[1] She isalso Vice-Chair of the Karen Community Association –UK, and on the board of the European Karen Network.[2]She has previously worked for Burma Campaign UK,[3]and assisting Karen refugees resettled in the United King-dom.Her father was Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan, the GeneralSecretary of the Karen National Union, who was assassi-nated on 14 February 2008. With her sister and brothers,Zoya Phan, Saw Say Say Phan and Slone Phan, she setup the Phan Foundation. The Foundation has four mainobjectives: To alleviate poverty, to provide education, topromote human rights, and to protect Karen culture forthe Karen people of Burma.Her sister Zoya Phan is a high profile activist, and is In-ternational Coordinator at Burma Campaign UK. ZoyaPhan’s acclaimed autobiography, ‘Little Daughter’, waspublished in April 2009. It was published in the UnitedStates as ‘Undaunted’ in May 2010.

25.1 Footnotes[1] Karen National Union website http://karennationalunion.

net/index.php/burma/freedom/knu-around-the-world

[2] Mizzima website http://www.mizzima.com/news/regional/3126-austrian-film-fest-highlights-burma.html

[3] Burma Campaign UK website http://www.burmacampaign.org.uk/index.php/news-and-reports/news-stories/UN-EU-Silent-as-Burmese-Army-Completes-Takeover-of-Kler-Law-Seh-Karen-State/13

53

Chapter 26

Bo Nat Khann Mway

In this Burmese name, Bo is an honorific.

BoNatKhannMway;[1] “NaKhamMwe";[2][3][4][5] “NaKam Mui";[6] “Col Saw Lah Pwe";[3] “Colonel Saw LaPwe";[7] "Bo Moustache";[7][8] “Saw Lar Bwe";[8] “SawLa Bwe";[4] “Saw Lah Bwe"; “Mr. Moustache";[5] “Mr.Beard” [9]

The break-away DKBA is managed by Bo Nat KhannMway. He is Brigadier General[2] of Brigade 5.[4]

Saw Lah Pwe’s force broke with the rest of the DKBAafter rejecting the regime’s plan for a Border Guard Force(BGF).[10]

He originally had five battalions under his command, buttwo battalions led by Majors Motethone and Sawblue,comprising a total of 300 troops, transformed themselvesinto the Border Guard Force on August 21. 2010. [8]

26.1 A quote

[The Burmese regime does not] understand the languageof diplomacy or political talks, but [only the language of]guns.[11]

26.2 References[1] “facebook”. facebook. Retrieved 2011-01-03.

[2] Noreen, Naw (2010-11-07). “DKBA renegades seize bor-der town”. Democratic Voice of Burma. Retrieved 2011-01-03.

[3] Weng, Lawi (2010-11-08). “DKBA Troops Seize ThreePagodas Pass”. The Irrawaddy. Retrieved 2011-01-03.

[4] Wade, Francis (2010-08-03). “KNU general-secretarysays Saw La Bwe may come home”. Danielpedersen.org.Retrieved 2011-01-03.

[5] “Burma attack 'a warning of possible civil war'" (Pressrelease). Burma Campaign UK. 2010-11-08. Retrieved2011-01-03.

[6] Wechsler, Maxmilian (2010-12-05). “A new phase inBurmese politics : What drives Brig Gen Saw La Bwe,

the commander of the DKBA’s 5th Brigade?". BangkokPost. Retrieved 2011-01-03.

[7] Phanida (2010-11-09). “Junta bombards DKBA splintergroup at Three Pagodas Pass”. Mizzima. Retrieved 2011-01-03.

[8] Kha, Kyaw (2010-08-26). “Bo Moustache and followersstill reject BGF plan”. Mizzima. Retrieved 2011-01-03.

[9] Naing, Saw Yan (August 2010). “Mr. Beard BreaksAway” 18 (8). The Irrawaddy. Retrieved 2011-01-03.

[10] Naing, Saw Yan (2010-11-09). “DKBA Brigade LeaderRejects Election Result”. The Irrawaddy. Retrieved 2011-01-03.

[11] Brig GenNaKhamMwe aka SawLa Bwe, Commander ofDKBABrigade 5, reported by Bangkok Post, 5 December2010

26.3 External links• Portrait of a Karen Warrior

54

Chapter 27

Zoya Phan

Zoya Phan (born 27 October 1980) is a political activistfrom Burma of Karen descent. She resides in the UnitedKingdom on political asylum, and is the International Co-ordinator of the human rights organization Burma Cam-paign UK. She is an outspoken critic of the Burmesegovernment and has repeatedly called for democratic re-form in Burma, as well as economic sanctions from boththe British government and the United Nations. In April2009, she published her autobiography, Little Daughter,in the UK, which was published under a different title inthe United States in May 2010.[1][2]

27.1 Biography

27.1.1 Early life

Zoya Phan was born in Manerplaw, then the headquar-ters of the Karen National Union (KNU), on 27 October1980, the second of her parents’ three biological children.Her father was Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan, General Sec-retary of the KNU, and her mother was Nant Kyin Shwe,a former soldier for the KNU. Zoya got her unusual namefrom her father, who named her after the Russian WorldWar II hero Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya because he sawseveral parallels between the Soviet fight against the Nazisand the Karen struggle against the Burmese government.She spent most of her early life in a Karen village calledPer He Lu, an hour’s walk away from the KNU headquar-ters in Manerplaw. When she was six, she began to spendmore time inManerplaw, and it was there she had her firstexposure to the fighting in Burma, as land mine victimsfrequently went to the hospital there for treatment.[3]

When Zoya was 14, the Burmese army attacked Maner-plaw and Per He Lu, forcing her and her family to run toMae Ra Moh, a refugee camp just across the border inThailand. In 1996, she and her family managed to crossback into Burma, settling in a Karen village called TherWaw Thaw (The New Village).[3] Halfway through theschool year, she nearly died of an unknown disease, onlyrecovering after weeks of being on an IV drip. In March1997, the village came under attack by the Burmese army,and she and her family fled back across the border to an-other refugee camp called Noh Poe, near a Thai-Karen

Bust of Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya, for whom Zoya Phan wasnamed.

village. After ten months, Zoya and her older sister, NantBwa Bwa Phan, were able to get to Mae Sot in Thailandfor three months, hoping for a chance to go to a universityin Australia; however, this fell through, and they decidedto complete their education at another refugee camp, MaeLa.[3] In 1999, Zoya and Bwa Bwa took an Open Soci-ety Institute (OSI) exam to earn a scholarship to go to auniversity. Both of them passed the first time; however,there was only enough space for Bwa Bwa, who went toBangkok University, and Zoya had to retake the examthe following year. While waiting, she caught cerebralmalaria, and almost died a second time. In 2000, she re-took the OSI exam and was granted an OSI scholarshipand a scholarship from Prospect Burma, giving her the

55

56 CHAPTER 27. ZOYA PHAN

chance to join her sister studying in Bangkok.[3]

27.1.2 Bangkok University

At Bangkok University, Zoya enrolled in the business ad-ministration program, as that was the only program herscholarship permitted her to enter. Zoya and her sisterhad no papers, and like other students from Burma hadto maintain a low profile to avoid the scrutiny of the Thaipolice. During her second year, she and Bwa Bwa helpedto secretly organize a support group for other Karen stu-dents, collecting money to give a prize to a student in oneof the refugee camps. In her third year, Zoya entereda three month internship in the consumer department ofTelecoms Asia, and was offered a position after she com-pleted her degree. After three years, she graduated witha Bachelor of Arts in business administration.[3] Uponreturning to the refugee camps, she and several otherKaren students from their organization illegally crossedthe Burmese border to Papun so they could personally de-liver their prize to the winner and to document what washappening to Karen people still in Burma. Soon after theyreturned, Zoya considered accepting Telecoms Asia’s of-fer, but ultimately accepted a scholarship to study inthe United Kingdom with her sister, while her youngerbrother Slone went to study in Canada. Before she left,her father took in two Burmese child soldiers who weresent to kill both him and Zoya; although they failed, itwas the first time the Burmese government had specifi-cally targeted her. Her mother died a few weeks later,and Zoya considered staying to help her father; however,he insisted that she go.[3]

27.2 Political activism

When Zoya was in her early teens, her father frequentlyused her name as a pseudonym for his writings, some-thing she only found out about many years later. Shefirst saw her father speak while her family was in TherWaw Thaw, inspiring her to become an activist herself.Upon entering the UK in 2005, she began volunteeringwith the Burma Campaign UK. She attended one rally intraditional Karen dress, and was asked on the spot to bethe master of ceremonies. She accepted, and soon after-ward, she was asked to do an interview with the BBC, andrapidly became a sought-out speaker for issues related toBurma and Burma-UK relations.Zoya has accused the Burmese government of using childsoldiers and violent repression tactics, including torture,ethnic cleansing, religious discrimination, and killing ofpolitical opponents and protesters.[3][4] She says that thishas had a particularly devastating effect on the Karen,who are an ethnic minority and around 40% Christianand 20% animist in predominantly Buddhist Burma. Inaddition, she accuses the Burmese government of ex-

treme corruption, saying that the leaders of the militaryjunta have intentionally mismanaged the economy to ben-efit themselves.[3][4] She has called for both the UN andthe British government to place economic sanctions onBurma, and to cease all arms deals with the government.In 2010, she sharply denounced the international com-munity’s response to the 2010 Burmese elections, sayingit was overly focused on very small changes that mightoccur while ignoring the fact that their impact would beminimal and would not lead to any significant increasein freedom.[5] While Aung San Suu Kyi was under housearrest, she repeatedly urged the UN and the ASEAN In-tergovernmental Commission on Human Rights to worktowards her release.[6]

In 2007, she spoke at a Conservative Party conference,calling for the British government to cease trade withthe Burmese government, and expressed her anger at theBritish government’s continued inaction towards Burmaeven in the face of human rights abuses. She was also verycritical of the UN for failing to impose an arms embargoon Burma after Russia and China blocked a SecurityCouncil motion. Later, she met with then-British primeminister Gordon Brown to encourage imposition of atrade embargo with the Burmese.[4]

In 2008, she accused the Burmese government of usingCyclone Nargis to proliferate ethnic cleansing. She saidthat the government’s lack of warning people about theimpending cyclone and refusal of foreign aid to assistwith medical treatment and rebuilding lead to thousandsof unnecessary deaths.[7] In addition, she harshly criti-cised Western governments, especially the United King-dom, for refusing to push further when Burma agreed toallow relief workers into small parts of the country, say-ing that they did not do enough to hold the Burmese gov-ernment accountable for its lack of response to the cy-clone. She pointed out that the junta had already bent tointernational pressure by allowing workers in at all, andsaid that the international community should have pushedharder, which she said would have forced the junta to al-low more essential aid. Ultimately, she said the interna-tional reaction was symbolic of the past several decadesof inaction towards political and human rights abuses inBurma.[3][7][8]

In May 2011, she spoke at the Oslo Freedom Forum, andsaid that despite the Burmese government’s claims of re-form, the changes were only cosmetic and no real changehad occurred in Burma. She also urged the UN to judgethe Burmese government by their actions instead of theirofficial statements.[9] In March 2012, she spoke at thefourth Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democ-racy and continued to maintain that the Burmese gov-ernment’s reforms were insufficient and that internationalpressure and sanctions were still necessary.[10] After SuuKyi’s National League for Democracy won 40 of 45 par-liamentary seats in April of that year, Zoya urged peo-ple not to become overly optimistic, echoing Suu Kyi’sstatement that far from being the complete transition to

27.4. AWARDS AND RECOGNITION 57

democracy, this was only the very beginning of the pro-cess. She also stated that, despite assurances from TheinSein that reforms would take place, attacks on minoritygroups in Burma were only increasing in frequency, fur-ther bolstering the need for caution.[11]

In addition to her work with the Burma Campaign UK,Zoya is the coordinator of the European Karen Network,secretary of the Karen Community Association (UK),and serves of the board of the Austrian Burma Cen-tre.[12][13]

27.2.1 Little Daughter

In speeches and interviews, Zoya frequently speaks abouther experiences to describe conditions in Burma. In2009, she worked with Damien Lewis to publish her au-tobiography, Little Daughter: a Memoir of Survival inBurma and the West, 2009. It is published by Simonand Schuster.[1][2] In May 2010, it was published in theUnited States under the title Undaunted: My Struggle forFreedom and Survival in Burma. She said that the goalof her book was to share her story as a Karen living inBurma, and to raise international awareness of the ongo-ing fighting and human rights abuses in Burma, especiallyin the east, which she says does not receive enough at-tention. At the end of the book, she also expresses herextreme scepticism over the upcoming elections, criticis-ing the UN and governments who believe that real re-form will be attained. She maintains that the situation inBurma is exactly the same as when she fled the country,and that only pressure and sanctions from other countrieswill bring about the reform necessary to create democ-racy within Burma.[3] The book has received positive re-views from papers such as the Globe and Mail and theIndependent.[1][2]

27.3 Personal life

Because Zoya had entered the UK with a falsified pass-port, she was almost deported, but was allowed to staywhile applying for refugee status. Two years after herinitial application, after applying for judicial review inAugust 2007, the British government granted it to her.After delivering her first speeches for the Burma Cam-paign UK, a radio transmission was intercepted, whichcontained a Burmese government’s hit list with her nameon it.[3] On 14 February 2008, just before she receivedher MA from the University of East Anglia, Zoya’s fatherwas assassinated by agents of the Burmese junta. Despiteher name still being on the Burmese government’s hit list,she and her family decided to attend his funeral in TheyBey Hta, just inside Kayin State in Burma.[14] Followingthis, Zoya and her remaining family set up the Phan Foun-dation, which aims to fight poverty, promote educationand human rights, and protect the culture of the Karen

people of Burma.[15] She received her MA in politics anddevelopment from the University of East Anglia in May2008.[16] Today, she resides in the UK, in an apartmentin north London.[17]

Zoya has two brothers and one sister. Say Say, her olderbrother, was adopted by her parents when she was fourmonths old, and her younger brother Slone Phan was bornwhen she was two. Nant Bwa Bwa Phan, her older sister,is the UK representative of the Karen National Union.Slone lives in Manitoba, Canada, where he studied at theUniversity of Manitoba and became active in the Mani-toba Interfaith Immigration Council, an organization as-sisting refugees coming into Manitoba.[18][19]

27.4 Awards and recognition

In 2009, Zoya became a TED Fellow.[20] In March 2010,she was honored as a Young Global Leader by the WorldEconomic Forum (WEF).[21]

27.5 References[1] Connelly, Karen (5 July 2009). “Little Daughter: AMem-

oir of Survival in Burma and the West, by Zoya Phan withDamien Lewis”. Globe and Mail (Canada). Retrieved 27July 2009.

[2] David, Calleja (1 July 2009). “Zoya Phan’s Account ofSurviving Burma”. Foreign Policy Journal. Retrieved 27July 2009.

[3] Phan, Zoya (2009). Little Daughter: a Memoir of Sur-vival in Burma and the West. Simon & Schuster.

[4] Mulholland, Helene (2 October 2007). “Campaigner at-tacks UK inaction over Burma”. The Guardian (London).

[5] Phan, Zoya (9 November 2010). “Regional press encour-aged by Burma election”. The BBC (London).

[6] “An Interview With Zoya Phan”. Allvoices.com. Re-trieved 18 May 2011.

[7] “Zoya Phan: Denial of aid is as effective a way of killingmy people as a bullet”. The Independent (London). 2 May2009.

[8] Jacques, Adam (10May 2009). “Credo: Zoya Phan”. TheIndependent (London).

[9] “Zoya Phan Testified at Oslo Freedom Forum”. Zo-miDaily. 11 May 2011. Retrieved 30 December 2011.

[10] “Speaker - Zoya Phan”. March 13, 2012. Retrieved June21, 2012.

[11] Phan, Zoya (April 2, 2012). “Aung San Suu Kyi’s vic-tory does not bring Burma freedom”. The Guardian UK.Retrieved October 6, 2012.

[12] “Austrian Burma Center”. Austrianburmacenter.at. Re-trieved 18 May 2011.

58 CHAPTER 27. ZOYA PHAN

[13] “Zoya Phan”. Zoya Phan. Retrieved 18 May 2011.

[14] “Funeral Statement By The Children of Pahod Mahn ShaLah Phan – Latest News”. The Phan Foundation. 18February 2008. Retrieved 18 May 2011.

[15] “The Phan Foundation”. The Phan Foundation. Retrieved18 May 2011.

[16] “Zoya Phan , Author Revealed at Simon& Schuster”. Au-thors.simonandschuster.co.uk. Retrieved 18 May 2011.

[17] Grice, Elizabeth (6 May 2009). “Zoya Phan: the face ofBurmese protest”. The Daily Telegraph (London).

[18] KNU Website http://karennationalunion.net/index.php/burma/freedom/knu-around-the-world

[19] http://uniter.ca/pdf/uniter-2007-10-18.pdf

[20] “TED Blog , 25 new TED Fellows announced for TED-Global in Oxford”. Blog.ted.com. 26 May 2009. Re-trieved 18 May 2011.

[21] Zoya Phan at a 2007 Conservative Party conference(Reuters) (5 March 2010). “Zoya Phan inducted as a‘Young Global Leader’ , Democratic Voice of Burma”.Dvb.no. Retrieved 18 May 2011.

27.6 External links• Oslo Freedom Forum

Chapter 28

San C. Po

Sir SanCrombie Po, CBE (1870–1946) was a Karen na-tionalist who devoted himself to improving the situationof the Karen people of Burma in the early 20th century.He was born in 1870 near the village of Bassein. His fam-ily was Sgaw Karen and Christian. He attended a schoolheaded by anAmericanmissionary, Charles Nichols, whowas impressed with his motivation and decided Po shouldcontinue his education in the United States. At the age offourteen, he was sent to live with relatives of Dr. Nichols.After high school, he attended Albany Medical Collegeand received his MD degree in 1893.[1] He applied fornaturalization as a U.S. citizen but was denied on thegrounds of his race.[2]

He returned to Burma and served as the district medicalofficer in Bassein, followed by Kyaukse and Myaungmya.He increasingly became involved in Karen nationalist af-fairs and in 1915 was appointed to Burma’s LegislativeCouncil, an advisory council to the British colonial gov-ernor.He was awarded a CBE and was further knighted in1933.[3]

He is also known for his book Burma and the Karens.Published in 1928, Burma and the Karens now functionsas a survey on the situation facing the Karen people in theearly 20th century.[4]

28.1 References[1] Po, San C, with an introduction by Christina Fink. Burma

and the Karens. Bangkok, Thailand: White Lotus Co.Ltd., 2001. ISBN 974-7534-82-7. introduction, page xv-xvi.

[2] Scott, James Brown; Hill, David Jayne; Hunt, Gaillard(1906). Citizenship of the United States, expatriation, andprotection abroad. Washington, DC: Government Print-ing Office. p. 100. Retrieved 2013-03-25. Cites In re Po,28 N.Y. Supp. 379.

[3] London Gazette http://www.gazettes-online.co.uk/ViewPDF.aspx?pdf=33936&geotype=London&gpn=2936&type=ArchivedIssuePage

[4] Paung, Shah. “San C. Po: Elusive Dream.” IrrawaddyNews Magazine June 2004.

28.2 External links• Irrawaddy article on San C. Po

• Read Burma and the Karens at Project GutenbergAustralia

59

Chapter 29

Saw Bwe Hmu

Saw Bwe Hmu (Burmese: - 24 July 1993) wasone of the five founders and leader of renounced Burmarock music band Iron Cross in 1991. He was an eth-nic Karen Christian. He was lead guitarist while ChitSan Maung was another guitarist and successor of him asleader of the band later, Khin Maung Thant was bassist,Banya Naing was keyboard player and Kha Yan playeddrummer. Lay Phyu, Ah Nge, Myo Gyi andWyneWynewere key singers of that band and R Zarni joined later.Composers Maung Maung Zaw Latt and L Phyu freedit from its reliance on such popular American bands asMetallica and won it critical acclaim and a wide public.[1]He played guitar at Success and Symphony music bandsbefore Iron Cross was founded. He composed sangs forKaisar.[2] He was a music critic and his pen name was ZarHlaing.[3]

He died at the age of 39[4] on 24 July 1993. He was sur-vived by wife and ex-keyboard player Naw PhawWar and2 daughters, Mee Mee Khe and Kabya Bwe Hmu. Bothare successful singers.[5]

29.1 References[1] “From Rock to Romance”. .irrawaddy.org. Retrieved

2014-06-17.

[2] Saw Bwe Hmu by Andrew Sway

[3] “Yar Zar – Zar Hlaing / Saw Bwe Hmu | MoeMaKaBurmese News & Media”. Moemaka.com. 2013-07-25.Retrieved 2014-06-17.

[4] Remembering Saw Bwe Hmu by Dr. Ko Ko Lwin

[5] Saw Bwe Hmu by Naing Zaw (Lazy Club)

60

Chapter 30

Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan

In this Burmese name, Padoh Mahn is anhonorific.

Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan (July 5, 1943 – February14, 2008) was the secretary general of the Karen Na-tional Union (KNU), which is the largest insurgent groupin Burma.[1]

30.1 Early life

Mahn Sha Lah Phan was born and raised in Tawgyaung,Maubin District. He studied at the University of Yangon,receiving a degree in history. After graduating, he joinedthe Karen resistance in Burma, and it was then that, likemany other members of the Karen resistance movement,he changed his name to Mahn Sha Lah Phan, which inKaren means “Mr. Star Moon Bright”. He chose starand moon (Sha Lah) to represent the light of the future,and bright (Phan) in the belief that the future would bebright.[2]

30.2 Activism

The KNU, through its armed wing, the Karen NationalLiberation Army, has been fighting against the Burmesegovernment for autonomy for the Karen people since1949. It operates in both Burma and Thailand. He servedas the Secretary-General of the KNU.[1][3] Sha Lah Phanwas against any form of surrender to the Burmese gov-ernment.[1]

30.3 Personal life

Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan married a former KNU sol-dier, Nang Kyin Shwe, and had three children in additionto adopting a boy named Say Say. Despite frequentlymoving back and forth across the Burma-Thailand bor-der, he insisted that his children receive the same educa-tion he did, and had adopted Say Say to give him a bettereducation than what would have been available to him inhis home village. His two daughters, Zoya Phan and Nant

Bwa Bwa Phan, are both political activists in the UnitedKingdom, and Bwa Bwa is currently the United Kingdomrepresentative of the Karen National Union.[2]

In 2005, Phan allowed two Burmese children posing asrefugees to stay in his house at Noh Poe. The childrenwere really child soldiers who were sent to assassinateboth him and Zoya; however, before they could carry outtheir plan, they admitted their real reason for coming tohim. In return, he permitted them to stay at Noh Poe toprevent them from being forced back into the Burmesearmy.[2]

30.4 Assassination

OnFebruary 14, 2008 at about 4:30pm in the border townof Mae Sot, Thailand, Sha Lah Phan was sitting in theveranda of his home when two gunmen approached himbearing gifts, which were reportedly fruit baskets.[1][3]One attacker shot Phan twice in the chest while the secondgunman shot him as he lay on the ground.[3] The attack-ers escaped in a pick-up truck.[1] His house was approxi-mately five kilometres from the Thai-Burmese border.[3]He died instantly and was reportedly 64 years old at thetime of his death.[3]

Phan had predicted an increase in violence ahead ofa Burmese constitutional referendum in May 2008, inan interview with Reuters the week of his death.[1] Hisadopted son, Say Say Phan, blamed a Karen splintergroup, the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA),for carrying out the attack on behalf of the Burmese mil-itary rulers.[3]

30.5 References

[1] “Burmese rebel leader is shot dead”. BBC News. 2008-02-14. Retrieved 2008-03-08.

[2] Phan, Zoya (2009). Little Daughter: a Memoir of Sur-vival in Burma and the West. Simon & Schuster.

[3] Radnofsky, Louise (2008-02-14). “Burmese rebel leadershot dead”. The Guardian. Retrieved 2008-03-08.

61

62 CHAPTER 30. PADOH MAHN SHA LAH PHAN

30.6 External links• The Guardian: Burmese rebel leader shot dead

• BBC News: Burmese rebel leader is shot dead

• Information on Pado Mahn Shar

• Karen Leader Pa Doh Mahn Shar of KNU onYouTube

Chapter 31

Tha Byu

Tha Byu (c.1778 – 9 September 1840) was the firstKaren Christian and a notable evangelist to the Karen.He was born in U Twa village. In his early life, he report-edly engaged in robbery and was involved in many mur-ders. After being sold as a slave to a Christian Burmese,he was converted to Baptist Christianity by AdoniramJudson in 1828. he was called “Tha Byu” (“youngerbrother”) by Judson when they first met. Judson recallsthat Tha Byu was a vicious and angry person when theyfirst met, and Tha Byu confirms this. After his conver-sion, though, Tha Byu became an energetic missionary tothe Karen people. After twelve years, 1270 Karen hadbeen baptized, with many other believers.

31.1 References• Clifford Kyaw De and AnnaMay Say Pa. "Tha Byu,Ko" A Dictionary of Asian Christianity. Scott W.Sunquist, editor. Michigan: Wm B Berdmans Pub-lishing Co. 2001.

31.2 Further reading• Francis Mason. Ko Tha Byu, the first Karen Chris-tian (1983)

• (Karen) Ya Ba Toh Loh. Life of Saw Ko Tha Byu(1950)

63

Chapter 32

David Tharckabaw

In this Burmese name, Phado Saw is anhonorific.

Phado Saw David Tharckabaw is Vice President andMinister of Foreign Affairs of the Karen National Union(KNU).[1][2][3]

David Tharckabaw should not, as in some cases,[4] beconfused with David Taw, who is the secretary of theKNU Peace Committee and also a member of a KNUdelegation that negotiated peace with the Burmese gov-ernment in January 2012.[5]

32.1 References[1] Interview Pado David Taw (Secretary. National Demo-

cratic Front KNU foreign affair)

[2]

[3] Phado David Htaw. His surname is variously spelt Tak-abaw, Takapaw, Takarpaw, Thackrabaw, Tharkapaw.

[4] A Long Struggle

[5]

32.2 External links• A long struggle

• Saw David Tharckabaw. Responsible for relationswith governments, the United Nations, and interna-tional NGOs.

• Extract from Secret Genocide

64

Chapter 33

Win Maung

For the Burmese boxer, see Win Maung (boxer).

In this Burmese name,Mahn is an honorific.

MahnWinMaung (Burmese: [máɴ wɪɴ́màʊɴ]; 17 April 1916 – 4 July 1989) was the thirdpresident of Union of Burma (Myanmar). He was ap-pointed president by Prime Minister U Nu in March1957. He served for five years until 2 March 1962, whenGeneral Ne Win's military coup d'état ousted Nu’s gov-ernment.

33.1 Biography

WinMaungwas an ethnic Karen born on 17April 1916 inthe Irrawaddy delta, son of Daw Tharya and U Shwe Yin.He graduated with a B.A. from Yangon University's Jud-son College in 1937. Between 1947 and 1956 he was var-iouslyMinister ofMinistry ofMining and Labour, Minis-ter of the Ministry of Transport and Telecommunicationand Minister of the Ministry of Water, Air and CostalShip. He was imprisoned between 1962 to 1967.

33.2 References• New York Times Obituary: Mahn Win Maung, Ex-Burmese President, 73

33.3 External links• Leaders of Myanmar (Burma)

65

Chapter 34

Naw Zipporah Sein

In this Burmese name, Naw is an honorific.

Naw Zipporah Sein is a Karen political activist andVice-President of the Karen National Union. ZipporahSein was born in 1955 in Kayin State, Burma, and trainedas a teacher before fleeing to Thailand in 1995. From1998 to 2008, she was the coordinator and executive sec-retary of the Karen Women’s Organization, which de-scribes its mission as helping Karen women refugees.[2]She has been called a “heroine” by the Political Heroeswebsite.[3]

34.1 References[1] “KNU - About Us”. Knuhq.org. Retrieved 2014-05-06.

[2] “Karen Women Organisation”. Karenwomen.org. Re-trieved 2014-05-06.

[3] “Leader - Naw Zipporah Sein”. Political Heroes. Re-trieved 2014-05-06.

34.2 External links• Biography on the Asian-Eurasian Human Rights Fo-rum

• Zipparh Sein’s Facebook Page

• Karen Women’s Organization

• 1000 Peace-women: Naw Zipporah Sein.

66

Chapter 35

Karen languages

The Karen /kəˈrɛn/,[2] or Karenic, languages are tonallanguages spoken by some seven million Karen people.They are of unclear affiliation within the Sino-Tibetanlanguages.[3] The Karen languages are written using theBurmese script.[4] The three main branches are Sgaw,Pwo, and Pa'o. Karenni (also known Kayah or RedKaren) and Kayan (also known as Padaung) are relatedto the Sgaw branch. They are almost unique among theSino-Tibetan languages in having a subject–verb–objectword order; other than Karen and Bai, Sino-Tibetanlanguages feature a subject–object–verb order.[5] This islikely due to influence from neighboringMon and Tai lan-guages.[6] The Karen languages are also considered un-usual for not having any Chinese influence.[7]

35.1 Classification

Because they differ from other Tibeto-Burman languagesin morphology and syntax, Benedict (1972: 2–4, 129)removed the Karen languages from Tibeto-Burman in aTibeto-Karen branch, but this in no longer accepted.[3][6]

The internal structure of the family is as follows:

• Pa’o

• Pwo (Eastern, Western, Northern, Phrae Pwo)

• Sgaw–Bghai

• Bghai: Lahta, Padaung (Kayan), Bwe (Bghai),Geko, Geba

• Brek (Bwe)• Kayah: Eastern Kayah, Western Kayah,Yintale, Manumanaw

• Sgaw: Sgaw, Paku Karen, Mopwa

35.1.1 Manson (2011)

Manson (2011)[8] classifies the Karen languages as fol-lows. The classifications of Geker, Gekho, Kayaw, andManu are ambiguous, as they may be either Central orSouthern.

Karen

• Peripheral

• Pa’o• Pwo

• Northern

• Kayan• Lahta• Yinbaw• Yintale

• Central

• Western Kayah, Eastern Kayah• Geba, Bwe• Paku (?)• Geker, Gekho (?; may be Central or Southern)• Kayaw, Manu (?; may be Central or Southern)

• Southern

• Sgaw, Paku• Dermuha, Palaychi

35.1.2 Shintani (2012)

Shintani (2012:x)[9] gives the following tentative clas-sification, proposed in 2002, for what he calls the“Brakaloungic” languages, of which Karen is a branch.Individual languages are marked in italics.

Brakaloungic

• Pao

• Pao

• Karen

• Kayah-Padaung• Kayah

67

68 CHAPTER 35. KAREN LANGUAGES

• Pado-Thaido-Gekho• Thaidai• Pado-Gekho• Gekho• Padaung• Padaung• Gekho (Yathu Gekho)

• Bwe• Bweba-Kayaw

• Kayaw• Bweba• Geba• Bwe

• Sgaw-Pwo• Pwo• Mobwa

• Mopwa• Blimaw

• Pako-Sgaw• Sgaw• Pakubwa• Paku• Monebwa• Thalebwa

However, at the time of publication, Shintani (2012) re-ports that there are more than 40 Brakaloungic languagesand/or dialects, many of which have only been recentlyreported and documented. Shintani also reports that Moninfluence is present in all Brakaloungic languages, whilesome also have significant Burmese and Shan influence.

35.2 References[1] Nordhoff, Sebastian; Hammarström, Harald; Forkel,

Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2013). “Karen”.Glottolog 2.2. Leipzig: Max Planck Institute for Evolu-tionary Anthropology.

[2] Laurie Bauer, 2007, The Linguistics Student’s Handbook,Edinburgh

[3] Graham Thurgood, Randy J. LaPolla (2003). The Sino-Tibetan Languages. Routledge. ISBN 0-7007-1129-5.

[4] Omniglot

[5] Description of the Sino-Tibetan Language Family

[6] Matisoff, James A. (1991). “Sino-Tibetan Linguistics:Present State and Future Prospects”. Annual Reviewof Anthropology (Annual Reviews Inc.) 20: 469–504.doi:10.1146/annurev.an.20.100191.002345.

[7] Thai Cultural Tourism

[8] http://jseals.org/seals21/manson11subgroupingd.pdf

[9] Shintani Tadahiko (2012). A handbook of comparativeBrakaloungic languages. Tokyo: ILCAA.

• George van Driem (2001) Languages of the Hi-malayas: An Ethnolinguistic Handbook of theGreater Himalayan Region. Brill.

35.3 External links• Free Anglo-Karen Dictionary

• Anglo-karen Grammar

• Drum Publication Group—Online Sgaw Karen lan-guage materials. Includes an online English - SgawKaren Dictionary.

• Karen Teacher Working Group—Several Karenfonts available for download.

Chapter 36

Bwe Karen language

Not to be confused with Brek language.

Bwe, also known as Bwe Karen and Bghai (Baghi), is aKaren language of Burma.

36.1 References[1] Bwe at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

[2] Nordhoff, Sebastian; Hammarström, Harald; Forkel,Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2013). “Bwe Karen”.Glottolog 2.2. Leipzig: Max Planck Institute for Evolu-tionary Anthropology.

69

Chapter 37

Eastern Pwo language

Eastern Pwo, or Phlou, is a Karen language spoken byover a million people in Burma and by about 50,000 inThailand, where it has been called Southern Pwo. It isnot intelligible with other varieties of Pwo.A script called Leke was developed between 1830 and1860 and is used by members of the millenarian Lekesect of Buddhism. Otherwise a variety of Burmese al-phabets are used, and refugees in Thailand have createda Thai alphabet which is in limited use.

37.1 References[1] Eastern Pwo at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

[2] Nordhoff, Sebastian; Hammarström, Harald; Forkel,Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2013). “Pwo EasternKaren”. Glottolog 2.2. Leipzig: Max Planck Institute forEvolutionary Anthropology.

70

Chapter 38

Geba Karen language

Geba, also known as Eastern Bwe, is a Karen languageof Burma.

38.1 References[1] Geba at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

[2] Nordhoff, Sebastian; Hammarström, Harald; Forkel,Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2013). “Geba Karen”.Glottolog 2.2. Leipzig: Max Planck Institute for Evolu-tionary Anthropology.

71

Chapter 39

Geko Karen

Geko is a Karen language of Burma. Yinbaw is report-edly a variety. Speakers of Geko and Yinbaw are ethni-cally Kayan, as are speakers of Lahta and Padaung.

39.1 References[1] Geko at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

Yinbaw at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

72

Chapter 40

Kayaw language

Not to be confused with Bwe language.

Brek, also known as Brek Karen, Bwe, andKayaw, is aKaren language of Burma.

40.1 References[1] Kayaw at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

[2] Nordhoff, Sebastian; Hammarström, Harald; Forkel,Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2013). “Brek Karen”.Glottolog 2.2. Leipzig: Max Planck Institute for Evolu-tionary Anthropology.

73

Chapter 41

Lahta language

Lahta is a Karen language of Burma.

41.1 References[1] Lahta at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

Zayein at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

74

Chapter 42

Northern Pwo language

Northern Pwo, or Phlong, is a Karen language ofThailand. It is not intelligible with other varieties of Pwo,though it is close to Phrae Pwo.

42.1 References[1] Northern Pwo at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

[2] Nordhoff, Sebastian; Hammarström, Harald; Forkel,Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2013). “Pwo North-ern Karen”. Glottolog 2.2. Leipzig: Max Planck Institutefor Evolutionary Anthropology.

75

Chapter 43

Pa'O language

Not to be confused with Pao language.

Pa'O is a Karen language spoken by half a million Pa'Opeople in Burma.The language is primarily written using a system of pho-netics devised by Christian missionaries,[3][4] and manyof the materials now available for it on the internet derivefrom Christian missionary involvement, although the ma-jority of the Pa'O are generally reported to be Buddhists(without real statistics, etc.).The language is also (correctly or incorrectly) referred toby the exonyms “Black Karen” and “White Karen”, bothof which are terms used in contrast to the Karenni (or“Red Karen”). The Christian missionary website Ethno-logue categorizes the language as “BLK”, abbreviating“Black Karen”.[5]

43.1 References[1] Pa'O at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

[2] Nordhoff, Sebastian; Hammarström, Harald; Forkel,Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2013). “Pa'o Karen”.Glottolog 2.2. Leipzig: Max Planck Institute for Evolu-tionary Anthropology.

[3] A Pa'O wordlist: http://www.ling.hawaii.edu/ldtc/languages/paoh/wordlist.html

[4] Some remarks on Pa'O Orthography: http://www.ling.hawaii.edu/ldtc/languages/paoh/orthography.html

[5] Accurate as of Feb. 2013, cf. http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=blk

76

Chapter 44

Padaung language

For the unrelated “Kayan” dialect cluster spoken by theKayan people of Borneo, see Kayan language (Borneo).

Padaung or Padaung Karen, also known as Kayan, isa Karen language of Burma, spoken by the Kayan people.

44.1 References[1] Padaung at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

77

Chapter 45

Phrae Pwo language

Phrae Pwo, or Northeastern Pwo, is a Karen languageof Thailand. It is not intelligible with other varieties ofPwo, though it is close to Northern Pwo.

45.1 References[1] Phrae Pwo at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

[2] Nordhoff, Sebastian; Hammarström, Harald; Forkel,Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2013). “Phrae PwoKaren”. Glottolog 2.2. Leipzig: Max Planck Institute forEvolutionary Anthropology.

78

Chapter 46

Pwo Karen languages

The Pwo Karen languages are the second largest groupof the Karen languages. The four languages are at bestmarginally mutually intelligible:

• Eastern Pwo, Western Pwo, Northern Pwo, PhraePwo.

The people who speak these languages are referred to bymany names, notably “Pwo Karen”. The Pwo Karen peo-ple have lived in the eastern part of Burma for centuries,and in the western and northern parts of Thailand for atleast seven or eight centuries.The endonym is Phlou [phʰou̯] or Ka Phlou [ka pʰlou̯],meaning “Karen” or “human beings”.

46.1 References[1] Nordhoff, Sebastian; Hammarström, Harald; Forkel,

Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2013). “Pwo”.Glottolog 2.2. Leipzig: Max Planck Institute for Evolu-tionary Anthropology.

79

Chapter 47

Red Karen language

Red Karen orKarenni, known in Burmese asKayah, isa Karen dialect continuum spoken by over half a millionKayah people (Red Karen) in Burma.The nameKayah is “a new name invented by the Burmeseto split them off from other Karen”.[2]

Eastern Kayah is reported to have been spoken by260,000 in Burma and 100,000 in Thailand in 2000, andWestern Kayah by 210,000 in Burma in 1987. They arerather divergent. Among theWestern dialects are Yintaleand Manu (Manumanaw in Burmese). There are incon-sistent reports of whether Yinbaw is Red Karen or GekoKaren.

47.1 References[1] Eastern Kayah at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

Western Kayah at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)Yintale at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)Manumanaw (Manu) at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

[2] Christopher Beckwith, International Association for Ti-betan Studies, 2002. Medieval Tibeto-Burman languages,p. 108.

47.2 External links• “E-books for children with narration in Karenni”.Unite for Literacy library. Retrieved 2014-06-21.

80

Chapter 48

S'gaw Karen language

“Paku language” redirects here. For the language ofBorneo, see Paku language (Indonesia).

S'gaw, also known as S'gaw Karen and S'gaw Kayin,is a Karen language spoken by over four million S'gawKaren people in Burma, and 200,000 in Thailand. S'gawKaren is spoken in Tanintharyi Region's AyeyarwadyDelta, Yangon Division, Bago Division and Kayin State.It is written using the Mon script. A Bible translation waspublished in 1853.Various divergent dialects are sometimes seen as separatelanguages: Paku in the northeast, Mopwa (Mobwa) in thenorthwest, Wewew, and Monnepwa.[2]

48.1 References[1] S'gaw at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

Paku at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)Mopwa at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)Wewaw at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

[2] Christopher Beckwith, International Association for Ti-betan Studies, 2002. Medieval Tibeto-Burman languages,p. 108.

48.2 External links• S'gaw Karen Grammar

• S'gaw Karen Dictionary

• S'gaw Karen Bible

• S'gaw Karen Picture Bible

• SEAlang Library Sgaw Karen Dictionary

• Drum Publication Group

81

Chapter 49

Western Pwo language

Western Pwo, or Delta Pwo, is a Karen language ofBurma. It is not intelligible with other varieties of Pwo.

49.1 References[1] Western Pwo at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)

[2] Nordhoff, Sebastian; Hammarström, Harald; Forkel,Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2013). “Pwo West-ern Karen”. Glottolog 2.2. Leipzig: Max Planck Institutefor Evolutionary Anthropology.

82

49.2. TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES 83

49.2 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

49.2.1 Text• Karen people Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_people?oldid=630587602 Contributors: Shii, Rickyrab, Leandrod, Paul A,Ahoerstemeier, Haabet, Bogdangiusca, K1Bond007, Chris 73, Altenmann, Superm401, GreatWhiteNortherner, Tom Radulovich, HenryFlower, PDH, PFHLai, Irpen, Zaslav, Aranel, El C, Kwamikagami, ZayZayEM, Kjkolb, Darwinek, Hintha, Jumbuck, Alansohn, Ctande,Lerdsuwa, Angr, Lapsed Pacifist, Yst, Behemoth, Rjwilmsi, Mayumashu, Coemgenus, Koavf, Nneonneo, CalJW, Common Man, Valen-tinian, CJLLWright, Chobot, Korg, Bgwhite, YurikBot, Briaboru, Hede2000, Splash, Manop, GeeJo, NawlinWiki, Leiwenxiu, Badagnani,Matticus78, Marcuscr, MSJapan, Ormondroyd, Harami2000, Jthreadgill, Sandstein, Pb30, Superp, Luk, SmackBot, WilliamThweatt,Aelfthrytha, InverseHypercube, Hydrogen Iodide, Big Adamsky, Midway, Kintetsubuffalo, Chris the speller, Persian Poet Gal, Cattus,Colonies Chris, TheGerm, OrphanBot, Khoikhoi, MichaelBillington, Bejnar, Ergative rlt, JorisvS, Wlee71, Makyen, Treehel, Bwpach,Joseph Solis in Australia, Menswear, Lokiloki, Hodgson, Mattbr, Scohoust, Roeggla, AshLin, Shirulashem, BetacommandBot, Epbr123,Barticus88, Zyrxil, Wagaung, Mrtoo, KP Botany, Fayenatic london, Yalens, Gökhan, JAnDbot, Kborland, Scanlan, KNL, Korenyuk,Myat82, Rockrangoon, J.delanoy, Katalaveno, Hoss190, Cgilbert76, Xenonice, Bsroiaadn, Smcilreavy, Hybernator, TXiKiBoT, Bbik,Jkeene, FrogTrain, Giov9, Aymatth2, Steven J. Anderson, Andymccullough27, Brokenwit, BrianAdler, Dornason, Palaeovia, GirasoleDE,Zacatecnik, Oxymoron83, Mfarmaner, Moeng, Neebs1959, Sitush, Budhen, 0reteki, RegentsPark, ClueBot, XPTO, Nicolp22, Takeaway,Eeekster, SoxBot, Suramik, Elisap98117, DumZiBoT, XLinkBot, Appius Psychopompos, Noctibus, DannyHuttonFerris, Addbot, DOIbot, Fieldday-sunday, Morning277, Lihaas, Favonian, Tassedethe, Lightbot, OlEnglish, Zorrobot, Luckas-bot, Yobot, Ptbotgourou, Disillu-sionedBitterAndKnackered, Ayrton Prost, Backslash Forwardslash, AnomieBOT, Xufanc, Ulric1313, Citation bot, Adrock1231, LilHelpa,Munin75, Ptkday, J04n, Korvin2050, Omnipaedista, RibotBOT, Ptiido, Shadowjams, Nyein8, Christian Solidarity Worldwide, Msolow,FrescoBot, LucienBOT, Botsystem, Samba riba, Citation bot 1, DrilBot, RedBot, Denverbabushka, Full-date unlinking bot, ChrisHamby,Lotje, Dinamik-bot, Tawoo, Clarkcj12, Jessi Moo, Soewinhan, RjwilmsiBot, Ripchip Bot, EmausBot, John of Reading, WikitanvirBot,Alessio Fratticcioli, Judokasms, The Blade of the Northern Lights, Likeaboss33, Shuipzv3, Medeis, Coolnsunny, StasMalyga, Δ, L Kens-ington, MALLUS, ClueBot NG, Jack Greenmaven, Zxcvbn1701, , Satellizer, Vacation9, VioletSeraphim, Snotbot, Sueheal, Helpful PixieBot, PhnomPencil, Atomician, Phyo WP, Kwekanyaw, Aisteco, Alixos, Burmamission, BattyBot, Maximuman, Danielhtoo, Mogism, Kaz-tom, Lugia2453, Daniellam91, Jaxartes, 069952497a, Kawthoo, Dendrite1, Jesper7, Adbar, History student 28, B14709, Fred Biggin,Claymccool, 07deb07, Monkbot, Ycc swe, RDeckers, Saw Barner and Anonymous: 210

• Democratic Karen Buddhist Army Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Karen_Buddhist_Army?oldid=626761937 Con-tributors: Skysmith, Haabet, Hintha, Toussaint, FlaBot, SmackBot, Brianski, Kazkaskazkasako, CristianoMacaluso, Cydebot, Wagaung,ArnoldPlaton, Nono64, Uthantofburma, BotKung, WereSpielChequers, Miotroyo, Iohannes Animosus, Paleofreak, MatthewVanitas, Ad-dbot, OlEnglish, Yobot, Againme, AnomieBOT, Xufanc, J04n, LucienBOT, Degen Earthfast, HenryYule2009, Full-date unlinking bot,FoxBot, RjwilmsiBot, Thos okapi, The Blade of the Northern Lights, Charles Essie, Majorcolor2 and Anonymous: 8

• God’s Army (revolutionary group) Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/God's_Army_(revolutionary_group)?oldid=626761965 Contrib-utors: Ahoerstemeier, Ryanaxp, Jossi, Neutrality, Freestylefrappe, Axeman89, Descendall, Jdcooper, Rjwilmsi, Koavf, CalJW, Le Anh-Huy, Conscious, Deodar, Maximusveritas, SmackBot, Aelfthrytha, JJay, Kintetsubuffalo, Xaosflux, Paul 012, Wikipediatastic, Cydebot,The Lizard Wizard, Fluxbot, Alex moore, Farkas János, VVVBot, Niceguyedc, Ktr101, PixelBot, Zappa711, Addbot, Josh Keen, Light-bot, Rubinbot, Xufanc, Outback the koala, Degen Earthfast, Dinamik-bot, Clumsily, RjwilmsiBot, Rtamayoaz, H3llBot, Supasate, Chris-Gualtieri, Raymond1922A, Charles Essie and Anonymous: 16

• Kantarawadi Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kantarawadi?oldid=630722752 Contributors: Srnec, Niceguyedc, Xufanc, Phyo WPand Murashel

• TheKarenHilltribes Trust Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Karen_Hilltribes_Trust?oldid=592522401 Contributors: Rjwilmsi,Wavelength, RadioFan, Grafen, SmackBot, Dougalg, Cydebot, GrahamHardy, Addbot, Js619, BG19bot, Karenhill and Anonymous: 2

• Karen National Liberation Army Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_National_Liberation_Army?oldid=629484876 Contribu-tors: KAMiKAZOW, Haabet, DocWatson42, Hintha, Japanese Searobin, ToddFincannon, Jeff3000, Lapsed Pacifist, Descendall, Rjwilmsi,Batterbu, SmackBot, Aelfthrytha, Kintetsubuffalo, Hmains, Bluebot, Ambuj.Saxena, Andrews12489, Cydebot, Kslotte, Jed, ArnoldPlaton,VolkovBot, TXiKiBoT, FrogTrain, SieBot, Yintan, Mfarmaner, ImageRemovalBot, ClueBot, Niceguyedc, Solar-Wind, Alexbot, Noctibus,Addbot, Fieldday-sunday, Eivindbot, Yobot, Xufanc, Que Sera Sera Sera, Lainestl, Degen Earthfast, EmausBot, John of Reading, Ald-nonymous, Helpful Pixie Bot, Phyo WP, Wattosacrim, Wxguy12, Charles Essie, NawEh and Anonymous: 9

• Karen National Union Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_National_Union?oldid=629455255 Contributors: Ahoerstemeier,KAMiKAZOW, TUF-KAT, Haabet, WhisperToMe, Itai, Joy, Wetman, Antandrus, Brianhe, Rich Farmbrough, Bobo192, Circeus, Trevj,Hintha, Cdc, Lapsed Pacifist, Koavf, CalJW, Alex Sims, Wisekwai, SmackBot, Aelfthrytha, Kintetsubuffalo, Mokwella, Evlekis, Ohconfu-cius, Neelix, Wagaung, Smith Jones, Scanlan, STBot, Hybernator, FrogTrain, BotKung, Chaoborus, Mfarmaner, RegentsPark, Solar-Wind,Iohannes Animosus, Paleofreak, Addbot, Eivindbot, Lightbot, Luckas-bot, Yobot, Natsharp, AnomieBOT, Xufanc, Que Sera Sera Sera,Kingpin13, GrouchoBot, JamesRockford, FrescoBot, HenryYule2009, FoxBot, Jonkerz, Soewinhan, RjwilmsiBot, Wikipelli, The Blade ofthe Northern Lights, CocuBot, Amp71, Phyo WP, Jingapore, Fart1001, Fatin01234, Charles Essie, Mfbjr, GabeIglesia, Kawthoo, NawEhand Anonymous: 31

• Karen of the Andamans Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_of_the_Andamans?oldid=575544958 Contributors: Orlady, SerAmantio di Nicolao, Colonel Warden and Sitush

• Karenni Army Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karenni_Army?oldid=626762153 Contributors: Ijon, Haabet, Hintha, Magioladitis,Solar-Wind, PixelBot, Addbot, Xufanc, Charles Essie and Anonymous: 2

• Karenni States Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karenni_States?oldid=630722428 Contributors: Olivier, Hintha, MChew, TheMad-Baron, SmackBot, Aelfthrytha, Kintetsubuffalo, SchreiberBike, Addbot, Xufanc, Murashel and Anonymous: 2

• Kawthoolei Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kawthoolei?oldid=630838712 Contributors: Bearcat, Hintha, Bhadani, FlaBot, Splin-tercellguy, BL Lacertae, BonsaiViking, SmackBot, Kintetsubuffalo, KylieTastic, Andymccullough27, ClueBot, MatthewVanitas, Addbot,Degen Earthfast, BattyBot, Cerabot and Anonymous: 4

• Kayan people (Burma) Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kayan_people_(Burma)?oldid=627447738 Contributors: Frecklefoot,Haabet, Chidoll, PBS, Alan Liefting, Orangemike, Discospinster, Dbachmann, Kwamikagami, Iranian86Footballer, Hintha, MPerel,

84 CHAPTER 49. WESTERN PWO LANGUAGE

ARKdeEREH, Lerdsuwa, Woohookitty, Pol098, Ratzer, Cuvtixo, Koavf, Nightingale, Bgwhite, T.woelk, RussBot, Kauffner, Blue Danube,SmackBot, Zainker, Peter Isotalo, Matthew Timbang, Dreadstar, Michalchik, Joseph Solis in Australia, Missvain, Angelofdeath275,Doom777, Cadsuane Melaidhrin, Emeraude, Tathar, Naniwako, Flutiki, Hybernator, Aymatth2, Saeta, Palaeovia, HansHermans, SieBot,Til Eulenspiegel, Sue Douglasss, WhereIsTheCite?, Excirial, DumZiBoT, John Blundell, Actam, Bergsteiger, Cewvero, Salim sakir, Ad-dbot, MrOllie, Chamal N, Elen of the Roads, Luckas-bot, Yobot, Editor2423, Momoricks, Xufanc, Citation bot, DynamoDegsy, LilHelpa,Xqbot, Mmthinker, RibotBOT, Joaquin008, Amitdatta, Citation bot 1, TobeBot, RjwilmsiBot, Ornithikos, ZéroBot, 11 Arlington, Menti-bot, Petrb, ClueBot NG, Hazhk, O.Koslowski, Helpful Pixie Bot, CitationCleanerBot, NotWith, PeterOle, Khazar2, Starsnoopy, Jesper7,TLyne13, 07deb07 and Anonymous: 59

• Pa-O National Organization Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pa-O_National_Organization?oldid=626828459 Contributors: Haa-bet, Hintha, WilliamThweatt, Cydebot, Eeekster, Addbot, Xufanc, Degen Earthfast, TjBot, John of Reading, Gurt Posh, Phyo WP, CharlesEssie and Khun Zaw Zaw Htay

• RedKaren Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Karen?oldid=624908577 Contributors: Haabet, Kwamikagami, ZayZayEM, Hintha,PANONIAN, Woohookitty, Koavf, Jimp, Badagnani, SmackBot, Aelfthrytha, Kintetsubuffalo, Hmains, TheNeon, HelloAnnyong, PamD,Coyets, Kborland, Magioladitis, Maproom, Giov9, Palaeovia, Thehphe, ImageRemovalBot, SoxBot, XLinkBot, John Blundell, Addbot,Anderscj, VP-bot, Rubinbot, Xufanc, CXCV, MastiBot, Tawoo, Ericwinny, The Blade of the Northern Lights, Δ, MALLUS, Chuispaston-Bot, ClueBot NG, CityOfSilver, Aranea Mortem, Burma601, Thewriterforkarenni and Anonymous: 11

• S'gaw people Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S'gaw_people?oldid=545024023 Contributors: Jeroen, Kwamikagami, Koavf, Beta-commandBot, Kborland, Hekerui, Addbot, TaBOT-zerem, A-eng, Tawoo and Anonymous: 3

• Western Karenni Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Karenni?oldid=624936969 Contributors: Bearcat, Orange Tuesday, Wil-helmina Will, Yobot, Xufanc, Snotbot and Shire Reeve

• Saw Ba U Gyi Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saw_Ba_U_Gyi?oldid=556176074 Contributors: Kwamikagami, Hintha, MZM-cBride, Bhadani, Gurch, Bgwhite, Jkaharper, Alaibot, Magioladitis, Waacstats, Rettetast, Reedy Bot, Hybernator, WereSpielChequers,Mr.Z-bot, Oosaw, Mfarmaner, Mkativerata, Addbot, Yobot, Xqbot, HRoestBot, Minimac, Soewinhan, RjwilmsiBot and Anonymous: 5

• Louisa Benson Craig Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisa_Benson_Craig?oldid=613663647 Contributors: Hintha, Angr,Gudnabrsam, Johnpacklambert, Icarusgeek, Solar-Wind, Good Olfactory, RjwilmsiBot, Captain Assassin!, ChrisGualtieri, Liz and BibleLiterate

• Smith Dun Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smith_Dun?oldid=588037294 Contributors: David Gerard, Zigger, Necrothesp, Hintha,Woohookitty, Koavf, Bhadani, Bgwhite, SmackBot, Aelfthrytha, Kintetsubuffalo, Bluebot, Bwpach, Rjka K, IndianGeneralist, Cgingold,Nono64, Yobot, LilHelpa, RjwilmsiBot, Mikemovall, NWFrontier, Phyo WP, ChrisGualtieri, Zovapuii, VIAFbot and Anonymous: 2

• Johnny and Luther Htoo Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnny_and_Luther_Htoo?oldid=626309423 Contributors: Skysmith,Docu, WhisperToMe, Altenmann, Bobblewik, Sesel, Utcursch, Popefauvexxiii, ClockworkLunch, Neutrality, D6, MeltBanana, Kwamik-agami, Brother Dave Thompson, Hintha, Geschichte, Vizcarra, Joolz, Bnguyen, Dismas, Descendall, Cuchullain, Crzrussian, Deus Homoni,DickClarkMises, Fisenko, Chanlyn, Wisekwai, Severa, Briaboru, LiniShu, Maximusveritas, DisambigBot, Kintetsubuffalo, Wikipediatas-tic, Eastlaw, Jack O'Lantern, Seicer, Mgorun, Gabe1972, Waacstats, Barkeep, Plastikspork, Good Olfactory, Addbot, Ozguco, SpBot,Mchow4000, Lightbot, RjwilmsiBot, ZéroBot, H3llBot, RscprinterBot, BattyBot, Haddo68 and Anonymous: 20

• Ka Hsaw Wa Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ka_Hsaw_Wa?oldid=603235492 Contributors: Andycjp, Woohookitty, Koavf, Bg-white, Wavelength, Khazar, Robofish, Cydebot, Laualoha, SimonBillenness, Cgingold, Pxma, Good Olfactory, Otisjimmy1, Fgheal, Frag-gle81, FrescoBot, Hariehkr, RjwilmsiBot, Qzxpqbp, Moonandthegirl and Anonymous: 3

• Pascal Khoo Thwe Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pascal_Khoo_Thwe?oldid=609663422 Contributors: Skysmith, Haabet, DavidGerard, Enzino, Bender235, Hintha, Graham87, SmackBot, Kintetsubuffalo, Ser Amantio di Nicolao, Pascal.Tesson, Barticus88, Puchku,Magioladitis, Waacstats, Hybernator, Palaeovia, Evansab, Mr.Z-bot, Addbot, Power.corrupts, Yobot, RjwilmsiBot, Fiedorczuk, HelpfulPixie Bot, BBCRCA, VIAFbot and Anonymous: 2

• Cynthia Maung Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cynthia_Maung?oldid=615980468 Contributors: Haabet, Cariaso, Bender235,Kwamikagami, Hintha, Gene Nygaard, Woohookitty, Aelfthrytha, Uzawaung, Will Beback, Khazar, DanKorn, Cydebot, Thijs!bot,NSH001, Gcm, Dsp13, Waacstats, DrKiernan, Hybernator, PolarBot, Good Olfactory, Addbot, Numbo3-bot, Lightbot, Yobot, Natsharp,JoJo, RibotBOT, Full-date unlinking bot, RjwilmsiBot, ZéroBot, Ontheborder2010, ClamDip, Narare, Qzxpqbp, Việt Nam Dân Chủ TiếnBộ Đảng, Guanaco55, and Anonymous: 10

• Bo Mya Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bo_Mya?oldid=587911645 Contributors: Rmhermen, Zigger, Kwamikagami, Hintha,HenkvD, Bnguyen, Bgwhite, Gaius Cornelius, Thijs!bot, Mlipin, Hybernator, BOTijo, Star Garnet, Good Olfactory, Addbot, Lightbot,Xufanc, Thehelpfulbot, Jun Nijo, Full-date unlinking bot, RjwilmsiBot, EmausBot, H3llBot, Phyo WP, BattyBot, Makecat-bot, VIAFbotand Anonymous: 8

• Nant Bwa Bwa Phan Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nant_Bwa_Bwa_Phan?oldid=619236431 Contributors: Hintha, Bgwhite,Welsh, Hmains, Epbr123, Nono64, Hybernator, WereSpielChequers, Mfarmaner, Duffbeerforme, Yobot, AnomieBOT, The Blade of theNorthern Lights, 2sc945 and Anonymous: 1

• BoNatKhannMway Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bo_Nat_Khann_Mway?oldid=571028018 Contributors: Haabet, Klemen Koc-jancic, BD2412, Bhadani, Bgwhite, Malcolmxl5, Niceguyedc, Dawynn, Yobot and RjwilmsiBot

• Zoya Phan Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoya_Phan?oldid=615813463 Contributors: Haabet, Rich Farmbrough, Hintha, Ff-bond, Woohookitty, Graham87, Ground Zero, DMacks, Ohconfucius, Flying Saucer, Magioladitis, Waacstats, Flaming Ferrari, Trusilver,VolkovBot, WOSlinker, Malcolmxl5, Mfarmaner, Iohannes Animosus, Yobot, AnomieBOT, RjwilmsiBot, EmausBot, The Blade of theNorthern Lights, H3llBot, BattyBot, Wrathofjames, VIAFbot, J.quartermaine and Anonymous: 2

• San C. Po Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_C._Po?oldid=612587986 Contributors: Deb, Hintha, Rjwilmsi, SmackBot, Hmains,Khazar, Collywolly, Postcard Cathy, Waacstats, Yume no Kishi, Andrew.bedhead, Lightbot, RjwilmsiBot, Quant18, VIAFbot and Anony-mous: 2

• Saw Bwe Hmu Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saw_Bwe_Hmu?oldid=614196373 Contributors: Hintha, Racklever, Valenciano,Waacstats, MyatLynnAung, Phyo WP, OccultZone and Anonymous: 1

49.2. TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES 85

• Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Padoh_Mahn_Sha_Lah_Phan?oldid=613969184 Contributors: Haa-bet, PBP, Rich Farmbrough, Bender235, Hintha, Mayumashu, Bgwhite, RussBot, CmdrObot, Neelix, Thijs!bot, Scanlan, Hybernator,Mfarmaner, Stevenphil, RogDel, Good Olfactory, Addbot, SpBot, Yobot, Full-date unlinking bot, RjwilmsiBot, The Blade of the NorthernLights, OleHansen2 and Anonymous: 2

• Tha Byu Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tha_Byu?oldid=600917330 Contributors: Shii, Hintha, Rjwilmsi, SmackBot, Waacstats,Johnpacklambert, Hybernator, Truthanado, Kjd624, OccultZone, 07deb07 and Anonymous: 2

• David Tharckabaw Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Tharckabaw?oldid=624910494Contributors: Haabet, KlemenKocjancic,Hintha, Mandarax, StephenBuxton, DGG, Gbawden, Ttonyb1, Yobot, PhnomPencil and Anonymous: 2

• Win Maung Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Win_Maung?oldid=604712466 Contributors: Ahoerstemeier, Rich Farmbrough, Ben-der235, Kwamikagami, Hintha, Rjwilmsi, Koavf, Sardanaphalus, SmackBot, Andrwsc, Cydebot, Biruitorul, Waacstats, Rixon45, Hyber-nator, ImageRemovalBot, Ekyaw, Good Olfactory, Addbot, Tassedethe, Lightbot, Xqbot, Mayor mt, FrescoBot, Full-date unlinking bot,Asalrifai, Dav subrajathan.357, Smalleditor and Anonymous: 4

• Naw Zipporah Sein Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naw_Zipporah_Sein?oldid=624910344 Contributors: Haabet, Hintha, LapsedPacifist, Mangojuice, Bgwhite, Asarelah, Aelfthrytha, Kintetsubuffalo, Will Beback, DanKorn, Amalas, Cydebot, Epbr123, DuncanHill,Magioladitis, Waacstats, Hybernator, Gbawden, Mfarmaner, Good Olfactory, Yobot, The Blade of the Northern Lights, Hall of Jade,PhnomPencil, Phyo WP, Hmainsbot1, Gorgeous Nightmare, NawEh and Anonymous: 1

• Karen languages Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_languages?oldid=629551889 Contributors: Haabet, Bogdangiusca,Kwamikagami, Angr, David Haslam, Abd, Stevey7788, Rjwilmsi, Alynna Kasmira, Badagnani, Haemo, Aelfthrytha, Kipmaster, JorisvS,Vanisaac, Deflective, PhilKnight, Dragfyre, Azalea pomp, G. Campbell, VolkovBot, TXiKiBoT, Jkeene, BotKung, BenoniBot, Neebs1959,WikiBotas, ClueBot, PipepBot, Niceguyedc, Alexbot, Kanguole, Amdf, MelonBot, Addbot, DOI bot, AndersBot, Yobot, A-eng, Lucien-BOT, Citation bot 1, Tawoo, EmausBot, Widr, Helpful Pixie Bot, Tahnawhsit and Anonymous: 10

• Bwe Karen language Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bwe_Karen_language?oldid=611061808 Contributors: Kwamikagami, Ad-dbot, EmausBot, PotatoBot, Mentibot and Helpful Pixie Bot

• Eastern Pwo language Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Pwo_language?oldid=611130696 Contributors: Kwamikagami,EmausBot, PotatoBot, Helpful Pixie Bot and Cukanovoleg

• GebaKaren language Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geba_Karen_language?oldid=611074299 Contributors: Kwamikagami, Pota-toBot and Helpful Pixie Bot

• Geko Karen Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geko_Karen?oldid=599066247 Contributors: Kwamikagami, ClueBot NG, TheJJJunkand Anonymous: 1

• Kayaw language Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kayaw_language?oldid=611060304 Contributors: Kwamikagami, GoodDay, Pota-toBot and Helpful Pixie Bot

• Lahta language Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lahta_language?oldid=599066318 Contributors: Kwamikagami and TheJJJunk• Northern Pwo language Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Pwo_language?oldid=611130721 Contributors: Kwamikagami,EmausBot, PotatoBot, TheJJJunk and Cukanovoleg

• Pa'O language Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pa'O_language?oldid=611126347 Contributors: Kwamikagami, Addbot, EmausBot,PotatoBot, ClueBot NG, Helpful Pixie Bot, Altaïr, Qetuth, Jep Tong and Anonymous: 1

• Padaung language Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Padaung_language?oldid=600593703 Contributors: Scott, Kwamikagami andHelpful Pixie Bot

• Phrae Pwo language Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phrae_Pwo_language?oldid=611128182Contributors: Kwamikagami, Addbot,EmausBot, PotatoBot and TheJJJunk

• Pwo Karen languages Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pwo_Karen_languages?oldid=602663457 Contributors: Haabet, Kwamik-agami, David Haslam, Alynna Kasmira, SmackBot, Whpq, Alaibot, Io Katai, TXiKiBoT, BotKung, Psamermit, BenoniBot, Addbot,Luckas-bot and Anonymous: 1

• Red Karen language Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Karen_language?oldid=613759321 Contributors: Kwamikagami, Tdslk,Addbot, EmausBot, Djembayz, TheJJJunk, Cukanovoleg and SteenthIWbot

• S'gaw Karen language Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S'gaw_Karen_language?oldid=630369980 Contributors: Haabet, Hippietrail,Wonder al, Kwamikagami, Hintha, David Haslam, JorisvS, Jose77, TXiKiBoT, Auntof6, Arjayay, Addbot, A-eng, FrescoBot, Tawoo,ClueBot NG, Saeng Petchchai and Anonymous: 5

• Western Pwo language Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Pwo_language?oldid=611130755 Contributors: Kwamikagami,EmausBot, PotatoBot, TheJJJunk and Cukanovoleg

49.2.2 Images• File:2010_Karen_girls_Khun_Yuam_district.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/2010_Karen_girls_Khun_Yuam_district.jpg License: CC-BY-SA-4.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Takeaway

• File:402935_4329556404986_108484308_n1.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0e/402935_4329556404986_108484308_n1.jpg License: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: 07deb07

• File:A_Karen_woman.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/A_Karen_woman.jpg License: Public domainContributors: Customs of the World Original artist: Photo: R. Lenz.

• File:Ambox_content.png Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f4/Ambox_content.png License: ? Contributors:Derived from Image:Information icon.svg Original artist:El T (original icon); David Levy (modified design); Penubag (modified color)

86 CHAPTER 49. WESTERN PWO LANGUAGE

• File:Blank.png Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d2/Blank.png License: Public domainContributors: ? Originalartist: ?

• File:Buddhist_Karen_in_Yangon.JPG Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/Buddhist_Karen_in_Yangon.JPG License: ? Contributors:I created this work entirely by myself.Original artist:Wagaung (talk)

• File:Burmese_character_k.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/10/Burmese_character_k.svg License: Pub-lic domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Ch1902

• File:Commons-logo.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg License: ? Contributors: ? Originalartist: ?

• File:Crystal_Clear_app_Login_Manager_2.png Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c2/Crystal_Clear_app_Login_Manager_2.png License: ? Contributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Densely_populated_Karen_village.JPG Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e6/Densely_populated_Karen_village.JPG License: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Adbar

• File:Edit-clear.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f2/Edit-clear.svg License: ? Contributors: The Tango! DesktopProject. Original artist:The people from the Tango! project. And according to the meta-data in the file, specifically: “Andreas Nilsson, and Jakub Steiner (althoughminimally).”

• File:Flag_map_of_Burma_(Myanmar).svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/11/Flag_map_of_Burma_%28Myanmar%29.svg License: Public domain Contributors:

• Location_Burma_(Myanmar)_ASEAN.svg Original artist: Location_Burma_(Myanmar)_ASEAN.svg: ASDFGHJ• File:Flag_of_Bangladesh.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f9/Flag_of_Bangladesh.svg License: Publicdomain Contributors: http://www.dcaa.com.bd/Modules/CountryProfile/BangladeshFlag.aspx Original artist: User:SKopp

• File:Flag_of_Cambodia.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/83/Flag_of_Cambodia.svg License: ? Contrib-utors: File:Flag_of_Cambodia.svg Original artist: Draw new flag by User: _

• File:Flag_of_Ceylon.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/Flag_of_Ceylon_%281948-1951%29.svg Li-cense: Public domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Zscout370

• File:Flag_of_East_Timor.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/26/Flag_of_East_Timor.svg License: Publicdomain Contributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Hong_Kong.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5b/Flag_of_Hong_Kong.svg License: Publicdomain Contributors: http://www.protocol.gov.hk/flags/chi/r_flag/index.html Original artist: Tao Ho

• File:Flag_of_India.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/41/Flag_of_India.svg License: ? Contributors: ? Originalartist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Indonesia.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9f/Flag_of_Indonesia.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: Law: s:id:Undang-Undang Republik Indonesia Nomor 24 Tahun 2009 (http://badanbahasa.kemdiknas.go.id/lamanbahasa/sites/default/files/UU_2009_24.pdf) Original artist: Drawn by User:SKopp, rewritten by User:Gabbe

• File:Flag_of_Japan.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/9e/Flag_of_Japan.svg License: ? Contributors: ? Originalartist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Kayah_State.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d0/Flag_of_Kayah_State.svg License: Pub-lic domain Contributors:

• Flag_of_Kayah_State.png Original artist: Flag_of_Kayah_State.png: Jolle• File:Flag_of_Laos.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/56/Flag_of_Laos.svg License: Public domain Con-tributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Malaysia.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Flag_of_Malaysia.svg License: Publicdomain Contributors: Create based on the Malaysian Government Website (archive version)Original artist: SKopp, Zscout370 and Ranking Update

• File:Flag_of_Myanmar.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8c/Flag_of_Myanmar.svg License: ? Contribu-tors: Open Clip Art Original artist: Unknown

• File:Flag_of_Nepal.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9b/Flag_of_Nepal.svg License: Public domain Con-tributors: Constitution of The Kingdom of Nepal, Article 5, Schedule 1 [1] Original artist: Drawn by User:Pumbaa80, User:Achim1999

• File:Flag_of_Pakistan.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/Flag_of_Pakistan.svg License: Public domainContributors: The drawing and the colors were based from flagspot.net. Original artist: User:Zscout370

• File:Flag_of_Singapore.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/Flag_of_Singapore.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: The drawing was based from http://app.www.sg/who/42/National-Flag.aspx. Colors from the book: (2001). TheNational Symbols Kit. Singapore: Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts. pp. 5. ISBN 8880968010 Pantone 032 shade fromhttp://www.pantone.com/pages/pantone/colorfinder.aspx?c_id=13050 Original artist: Various

• File:Flag_of_South_Korea.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/Flag_of_South_Korea.svg License: Pub-lic domain Contributors: Ordinance Act of the Law concerning the National Flag of the Republic of Korea, Construction and color guidelines(Russian/English) ← This site is not exist now.(2012.06.05) Original artist: Various

• File:Flag_of_Spain.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/9a/Flag_of_Spain.svg License: ? Contributors: ? Originalartist: ?

49.2. TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES 87

• File:Flag_of_Sri_Lanka.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/11/Flag_of_Sri_Lanka.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: SLS 693 - National flag of Sri Lanka Original artist: Zscout370

• File:Flag_of_Sweden.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4c/Flag_of_Sweden.svg License: ? Contributors: ? Origi-nal artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Thailand.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/Flag_of_Thailand.svg License: Public domainContributors: Own work Original artist: Zscout370

• File:Flag_of_Tibet.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Flag_of_Tibet.svg License: Public domain Con-tributors: From http://www.iheartvector.com/2008/04/25/tibetan-vector-flag/ Original artist: Unknown

• File:Flag_of_the_People’{}s_Republic_of_China.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fa/Flag_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China.svg License: Public domain Contributors: Own work, http://www.protocol.gov.hk/flags/eng/n_flag/design.html Original artist: Drawn by User:SKopp, redrawn by User:Denelson83 and User:Zscout370

• File:Flag_of_the_Philippines.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/99/Flag_of_the_Philippines.svg License:Public domain Contributors: The design was taken from [1] and the colors were also taken from a Government website Original artist:User:Achim1999

• File:Flag_of_the_Republic_of_China.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/72/Flag_of_the_Republic_of_China.svg License: Public domain Contributors: [1] Original artist: User:SKopp

• File:Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/ae/Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg Li-cense: ? Contributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_the_United_States.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a4/Flag_of_the_United_States.svg License: ?Contributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:IMG_JudsonChurch.JPG Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/46/IMG_JudsonChurch.JPG License: ? Contribu-tors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Incubator-notext.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e3/Incubator-logo.svg License: ? Contributors:http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Meddie_Egg_horizontal_line.svg Original artist: NielsF

• File:Karen_National_Liberation_Army_flag.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Karen_National_Liberation_Army_flag.svg License: Public domain Contributors: Image:Karen National Liberation Army flag.png from [1] Original artist:Jolle

• File:Karen_National_Union_Flag.png Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c2/Karen_National_Union_Flag.png License: Public domain Contributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Karen_Padaung_Girl_Portrait.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6e/Karen_Padaung_Girl_Portrait.jpg License: CC-BY-2.5 Contributors: picture taken by author Original artist: Diliff

• File:Karen_house_entrance.JPG Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3b/Karen_house_entrance.JPG License:CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Adbar

• File:Karen_village.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/Karen_village.jpg License: Public domain Con-tributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Kayan_woman_with_neck_rings.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/03/Kayan_woman_with_neck_rings.jpg License: CC-BY-2.0 Contributors: http://www.flickr.com/photos/babasteve/351227116/ Original artist: Steve Evans

• File:Kayanlahta.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f3/Kayanlahta.jpg License: Public domain Contributors:Transferred from en.wikipedia; transferred to Commons by User:Shashenka using CommonsHelper.Original artist: User:Tawoo. Original uploader was Tawoo at en.wikipedia

• File:Kayar.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/5f/Kayar.jpg License: ? Contributors:AuthorOriginal artist:User:Tawoo

• File:Map_of_Karenni_States-1917.png Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dc/Map_of_Karenni_States-1917.png License: CC-BY-SA-4.0 Contributors: Own work based on Section of the Map of Shan States 1917 Original artist: Xufanc

• File:Memorial_to_Zoya_Kosmodemyanskaya.JPG Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7d/Memorial_to_Zoya_Kosmodemyanskaya.JPG License: Public domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Rave

• File:MyanmarKayin.png Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/60/MyanmarKayin.png License: CC-BY-SA-3.0Contributors: taken from the english Wikipedia Original artist:

• File:PADAUNG_COLD-WEATHER_COSTUMEcut.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/94/PADAUNG_COLD-WEATHER_COSTUMEcut.jpg License: Public domain Contributors: National Geographic; march 1922.Original artist: Sir George Scott

• File:P_vip.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/69/P_vip.svg License: ? Contributors: ? Original artist: ?• File:Peacock_symbol_Burma.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a5/Peacock_symbol_Burma.svg License:CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors:

• Peacock_symbol_Burma.PNG Original artist: Peacock_symbol_Burma.PNG: Gryffindor• File:Question_book-new.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/99/Question_book-new.svg License: ? Contributors:Created from scratch in Adobe Illustrator. Based on Image:Question book.png created by User:Equazcion Original artist:Tkgd2007

• File:Rice_fields_dry_season_Karen.JPG Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/Rice_fields_dry_season_Karen.JPG License: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Adbar

88 CHAPTER 49. WESTERN PWO LANGUAGE

• File:Saharat_Thai_Doem_map.png Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4f/Saharat_Thai_Doem_map.png Li-cense: ? Contributors:Own workOriginal artist:[/w/index.php?title=User:Murashel&action=edit&redlink=1 Murashel]

• File:ShansAtDurbar.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/89/ShansAtDurbar.jpg License: Public domainContributors: G. E. Mitton, Scott of the Shan Hills, 1936 Original artist: photographer, J. G. Scott, died 1934

• File:Text_document_with_red_question_mark.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a4/Text_document_with_red_question_mark.svg License: Public domain Contributors: Created by bdesham with Inkscape; based upon Text-x-generic.svgfrom the Tango project. Original artist: Benjamin D. Esham (bdesham)

• File:Thunderbird_on_Totem_Pole.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9c/Thunderbird_on_Totem_Pole.jpg License: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: w:Image:Thunderbird_on_Totem_Pole.jpg Original artist: Dr Haggis

• File:Waricon.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/65/Waricon.svg License: ? Contributors: ? Original artist: ?• File:WikiProject_Burma_(Myanmar)_peacock.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/WikiProject_Burma_%28Myanmar%29_peacock.svg License: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: Modified version of en::File:Burmapeacockforhistory.gifOriginal artist: Original uploader was Stepshep at en.wikipedia

• File:Wiki_letter_w.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/6c/Wiki_letter_w.svg License: ? Contributors: ? Originalartist: ?

49.2.3 Content license• Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0