03-08-2017, 11:06 PM
*** 9-Mar-17 World View -- Thousands flee from Myanmar into China to escape army clashes with ethnic militias
This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com
****
**** Thousands flee from Myanmar into China to escape army clashes with ethnic militias
****
![[Image: g170308b.jpg]](http://Media.GenerationalDynamics.com/ww2010/g170308b.jpg)
United Wa State Army (UWSA) rebel soldiers marching (Irrawaddy)
Thousands of Chinese-speaking ethnic Kokang people living in the
Kokang region of Myanmar, along the border with China, have fled in
panic across the border into China, to escape clashes between
Myanmar's military and Kokang’s Myanmar National Democratic Alliance
Army (MNDAA). The Kokang MNDAA is one of four ethnic militias in the
Northern Alliance, fighting the army. China is demanding that the
army bring the region under control, but that's unlikely to happen,
since the army is one of the belligerents.
In October 2015, the government of Myanmar (Burma) concluded a peace
agreement with its armed ethnic groups that had been under negotiation
since 2011. According to the government rhetoric, the agreement was
"bringing hope" that the entire country would soon be "at peace."
However, of the 15 armed ethnic groups in Burma, only eight signed the
agreement, while the others indicated that they wished to continue
fighting Burma's army.
In November of last year, four of the non-signed formed the Northern
Alliance, and and launched a series of violent attacks on military
outposts and police stations across the northern part of the country.
Tens of thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes, many
crossing the border into China.
China's army is on alert along the border with Myanmar, but it has not
intervened so far. Instead, it's backing the United Wa State Army
(UWSA), an organization with roots in the Communist Party of Burma, a
militia with 20,000 members of the ethnic Wa community, and is
supplying them with heavy weaponry.
This week, the UWSA took the lead in hosting a three-day meeting of
seven armed ethnic militias, forming a political bloc to negotiate
with the Myanmar government. The militias include the MongLa National
Democratic Alliance Army (NDAA), Kachin Independence Army (KIA), Shan
State Progress Party/Shan State Army-North (SSPP/SSA-N), Ta’ang
National Liberation Army (TNLA), the Kokang Myanmar National
Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) and the Arakan Army (AA).
One can only guess what China's motivation is in supporting the UWSA,
but presumably there are two objectives -- bring about stability on
the Myanmar side of the border, and use the UWSA to gain leverage
against Myanmar's government.
However, the clashes between the army and the MNDAA are continuing,
and panicky civilians continue to flee across the border into China.
Some analysts have expressed concern that this could spiral out of
control into a larger war. Irrawaddy News (Myanmar) and Deutsche Welle and VOA and Asia Times
Related Articles
****
**** Myanmar faces an investigation for ethnic cleansing of Rohingya Muslims
****
Myanmar's army says that it has halted "clearance operations," which
have been targeting Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine state which the United
Nations has called ethnic cleansing and possible crimes against
humanity.
Myanmar's army conducted a scorched earth attack on Rohingya Muslims
burning down thousands of homes and buildings in dozens of villages.
The army committed massacres, rapes and other atrocities that have
displace hundreds of thousands of people, with tens of thousands to
fleeing for their lives across the border into Bangladesh.
Burma has tacitly admitted guilt by forbidding any journalists or
humanitarian groups from entering Rakhine State to investigate.
Burma's government agrees that the satellite images show that Rohingya
villages are being burned down, but they make the laughable claim that
the Rohingyas are burning down the villages themselves in order to
embarrass the government. There have also been dozens of videos
showing Burma's police beating and raping Rohingya civilians, but
Burma's government claims that all of these videos are phony and have
been fabricated.
This follows repeated xenophobic attacks by Buddhists, led by Buddhist
monk Ashin Wirathu and his "969 movement," against the Rohingya
Muslims, including rapes, torture and other atrocities committed by
Buddhists, targeting the Rohingyas. The Rohingyas have a darker skin
than Burmese, and they speak a Bengali dialect. The actions by the
Buddhists were similar to the actions by the Nazis against the Jews.
The European Union is under growing pressure to lead
an independent international investigation into the atrocities
in Burma, and is expected to sponsor a resolution on March 16
to the United Nations Human Rights Council.
According to Phil Robertson from Human Rights Watch’s Asia division,
"It’s time for the soldiers on the ground committing these atrocities,
and their superiors in command authority, to be held accountable, and
that is precisely what the Human Rights Council is going to do."
Frontier Myanmar and Reuters (16-Feb)
Related Articles
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Myanmar, Burma, China,
Northern Alliance, MongLa National Democratic Alliance Army, NDAA,
Kachin Independence Army, KIA, Ta’ang National Liberation Army, TNLA,
Shan State Progress Party/Shan State Army-North, SSPP/SSA-N,
Kokang Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, MNDAA,
Arakan Army, AA, Wa, United Wa State Army, USWA,
Rakhine State, Rohingya, Bangladesh, Ashin Wirathu, 969 movement,
Phil Robertson, Human Rights Watch
Permanent web link to this article
Receive daily World View columns by e-mail
Contribute to Generational Dynamics via PayPal
John J. Xenakis
100 Memorial Drive Apt 8-13A
Cambridge, MA 02142
Phone: 617-864-0010
E-mail: john@GenerationalDynamics.com
Web site: http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com
Forum: http://www.gdxforum.com/forum
Subscribe to World View: http://generationaldynamics.com/subscribe
This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com
- Thousands flee from Myanmar into China to escape army clashes with ethnic militias
- Myanmar faces an investigation for ethnic cleansing of Rohingya Muslims
****
**** Thousands flee from Myanmar into China to escape army clashes with ethnic militias
****
United Wa State Army (UWSA) rebel soldiers marching (Irrawaddy)
Thousands of Chinese-speaking ethnic Kokang people living in the
Kokang region of Myanmar, along the border with China, have fled in
panic across the border into China, to escape clashes between
Myanmar's military and Kokang’s Myanmar National Democratic Alliance
Army (MNDAA). The Kokang MNDAA is one of four ethnic militias in the
Northern Alliance, fighting the army. China is demanding that the
army bring the region under control, but that's unlikely to happen,
since the army is one of the belligerents.
In October 2015, the government of Myanmar (Burma) concluded a peace
agreement with its armed ethnic groups that had been under negotiation
since 2011. According to the government rhetoric, the agreement was
"bringing hope" that the entire country would soon be "at peace."
However, of the 15 armed ethnic groups in Burma, only eight signed the
agreement, while the others indicated that they wished to continue
fighting Burma's army.
In November of last year, four of the non-signed formed the Northern
Alliance, and and launched a series of violent attacks on military
outposts and police stations across the northern part of the country.
Tens of thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes, many
crossing the border into China.
China's army is on alert along the border with Myanmar, but it has not
intervened so far. Instead, it's backing the United Wa State Army
(UWSA), an organization with roots in the Communist Party of Burma, a
militia with 20,000 members of the ethnic Wa community, and is
supplying them with heavy weaponry.
This week, the UWSA took the lead in hosting a three-day meeting of
seven armed ethnic militias, forming a political bloc to negotiate
with the Myanmar government. The militias include the MongLa National
Democratic Alliance Army (NDAA), Kachin Independence Army (KIA), Shan
State Progress Party/Shan State Army-North (SSPP/SSA-N), Ta’ang
National Liberation Army (TNLA), the Kokang Myanmar National
Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) and the Arakan Army (AA).
One can only guess what China's motivation is in supporting the UWSA,
but presumably there are two objectives -- bring about stability on
the Myanmar side of the border, and use the UWSA to gain leverage
against Myanmar's government.
However, the clashes between the army and the MNDAA are continuing,
and panicky civilians continue to flee across the border into China.
Some analysts have expressed concern that this could spiral out of
control into a larger war. Irrawaddy News (Myanmar) and Deutsche Welle and VOA and Asia Times
Related Articles
- China puts army on high alert along border with Burma (Myanmar) (22-Nov-2016)
- Myanmar (Burma) government fails to conclude nationwide peace agreement (15-Oct-2015)
- Generational history of Burma (Myanmar) (26-Sep-2007)
****
**** Myanmar faces an investigation for ethnic cleansing of Rohingya Muslims
****
Myanmar's army says that it has halted "clearance operations," which
have been targeting Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine state which the United
Nations has called ethnic cleansing and possible crimes against
humanity.
Myanmar's army conducted a scorched earth attack on Rohingya Muslims
burning down thousands of homes and buildings in dozens of villages.
The army committed massacres, rapes and other atrocities that have
displace hundreds of thousands of people, with tens of thousands to
fleeing for their lives across the border into Bangladesh.
Burma has tacitly admitted guilt by forbidding any journalists or
humanitarian groups from entering Rakhine State to investigate.
Burma's government agrees that the satellite images show that Rohingya
villages are being burned down, but they make the laughable claim that
the Rohingyas are burning down the villages themselves in order to
embarrass the government. There have also been dozens of videos
showing Burma's police beating and raping Rohingya civilians, but
Burma's government claims that all of these videos are phony and have
been fabricated.
This follows repeated xenophobic attacks by Buddhists, led by Buddhist
monk Ashin Wirathu and his "969 movement," against the Rohingya
Muslims, including rapes, torture and other atrocities committed by
Buddhists, targeting the Rohingyas. The Rohingyas have a darker skin
than Burmese, and they speak a Bengali dialect. The actions by the
Buddhists were similar to the actions by the Nazis against the Jews.
The European Union is under growing pressure to lead
an independent international investigation into the atrocities
in Burma, and is expected to sponsor a resolution on March 16
to the United Nations Human Rights Council.
According to Phil Robertson from Human Rights Watch’s Asia division,
"It’s time for the soldiers on the ground committing these atrocities,
and their superiors in command authority, to be held accountable, and
that is precisely what the Human Rights Council is going to do."
Frontier Myanmar and Reuters (16-Feb)
Related Articles
- Devastating UN report on Burma shows scale of ghastly atrocities by Buddhists targeting Muslim Rohingyas (04-Feb-2017)
- UN: Burma (Myanmar) committing 'ethnic cleansing' of Rohingyas (29-Nov-2016)
- Meiktila, Burma, violence has echoes of Kristallnacht (05-Apr-2013)
- Generational history of Burma (Myanmar) (26-Sep-2007)
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Myanmar, Burma, China,
Northern Alliance, MongLa National Democratic Alliance Army, NDAA,
Kachin Independence Army, KIA, Ta’ang National Liberation Army, TNLA,
Shan State Progress Party/Shan State Army-North, SSPP/SSA-N,
Kokang Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, MNDAA,
Arakan Army, AA, Wa, United Wa State Army, USWA,
Rakhine State, Rohingya, Bangladesh, Ashin Wirathu, 969 movement,
Phil Robertson, Human Rights Watch
Permanent web link to this article
Receive daily World View columns by e-mail
Contribute to Generational Dynamics via PayPal
John J. Xenakis
100 Memorial Drive Apt 8-13A
Cambridge, MA 02142
Phone: 617-864-0010
E-mail: john@GenerationalDynamics.com
Web site: http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com
Forum: http://www.gdxforum.com/forum
Subscribe to World View: http://generationaldynamics.com/subscribe
