Thursday, May 31, 2012

New Burma peace negotiating team arrives in KIO

AUNG MIN, LEADER OF BURMESE PEACE NEGOTIATING TEAM (LEFT) AND KIO DR. LAJA

A new peace negotiating team, led by Burmese Railways Minister Aung Min, arrived at Mai Ja Yang, the second largest town under Kachin Independence Army (KIA) in Kachin state, at 3 pm today, according to Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) officials.

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Kachinland News editor receives ‘Citizen of Burma Award’

LAHPAI NAW MING (RIGHT), WINNER OF 2012 CITIZEN OF BURMA AWARD

Lahpai Naw Ming, editor and chief of the Kachinland News website has won this year's “Citizen of Burma Award”, an honor given by exiled Burma activists living in the US.  Last week's announcement of Naw Ming's achievement is bitter sweet as it comes less than 6 months after he was left paralyzed from the neck down while reporting from the front line of the Kachin conflict.

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Burma government soldiers beat Baptist preacher

PREACHER DING KYANG SHOT IN THE KNEE WHILE ATTENDING AMEETING AT A CHURCH IN CHIPWI ON APRIL 28

Burma army soldiers severely beat a Baptist preacher in Kachin state's northernmost Putau (also Patao) district earlier this month when he was crossing a bridge, say sources close to the victim. Troops also confiscated the national identity card of the preacher who practices at the Sumpyi Yang Kachin Baptist church.

Sunday, May 27, 2012

CPI pushes for Myitsone restart amid bribery allegations

A CHINESE CPI OFFICIAL (LEFT) MET WITH THE DAM-RELOCATED VILLAGERS IN THE GOVERNMENT'S AUNG MIN THAR MODEL VILLAGE ON APRIL 18.

The Paris-based International Commission on Large Dams (ICOLD) has launched a “third-party inspection in order to dispel Myanmar people’s doubts” regarding the controversial Myitsone dam project , according to Xu Zeping of the Chinese Committee on Large Dams, a leading member organization in ICOLD.

Thursday, May 24, 2012

Kachin youth concert raises relief funds in Hpakant jade area

 KACHIN YOUTH PERFORM FOR A RELIEF CONCERT HELD IN THE HPAKANT JADE MINING AREA OF KACHIN STATE ON MAY 15 AND 16.

HPAKANT, Burma — A two-day concert held last week in the Hpakant jade mining area of Kachin state successfully raised funds for the Kachin relief effort, according to local youth leaders who organized the event.

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Burma soldiers gang-rape women in Kachin Church

48-YEAR-OLD GRANDMOTHER KWAT SAYS GANG-RAPED AND HELD FOR THREE DAY BY SOLDIERS IN A CHURCH NEAR PANGWA.

A group of Burma army soldiers tortured and then gang-raped a 48-year-old Kachin woman for three days in her village church northwest of Pang Wa (Pangwa) beginning May 1, according to the Kachin Women's Association of Thailand (KWAT) citing interviews with the victim and a local villager who was forced to watch the assault.

Saturday, May 19, 2012

UN chief calls for end to Kachin conflict

KIO'S CHAIRMAN ZAWNG HRA (LEFT) AND BURMESE PRESIDENT THEIN SEIN

Speaking at a press briefing in New York last Thursday a spokesman for Secretary General Ban Ki Moon declared that the head of the UN calls on all parties involved in the Kachin conflict “to cease offensives and to find a peaceful resolution to the ongoing conflict there”.

Thursday, May 17, 2012

KIO urges Ban's UN intervene in Kachin conflict


KIO's Chairman Lanyaw Zawng Hra

In an open letter sent to the UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon earlier this week the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) called on the UN to take an active role in bringing about an end to the Kachin conflict which began in June of last year when Burma army troops attacked KIO positions, ending a 17-year ceasefire.

May 15 KIO Chairman's letter to UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon

UN GENERAL SECRETARY BAN KI-MOON

CENTRAL COMMITTEE
KACHIN INDEPENDENCE ORGANIZATION

15 May, 2012
His Excellency Mr. Ban Ki-Moon
Secretary-General of the United Nations
Unite d Nation Headquarters
NewYork, NY 10017, USA

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

4 Burma army soldiers killed in Shan state clash


A KIA sniper and frontline base in Northern Shan State.
Four soldiers from the Burma army were killed yesterday during a clash with troops from the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) in northern Shan state, said KIA officers at the frontline.

Kachin villagers take shelter in Sumprabum church


Fighting between government troops and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) in northern Kachin state has forced dozens of civilians to take shelter at a Baptist church in Sumprabum, located about 80 miles north of Myitkyina.

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

May 15 KIO Chairman's letter to UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon


CENTRAL COMMITTEE
KACHIN INDEPENDENCE ORGANIZATION


15 May, 2012
His Excellency Mr. Ban Ki-Moon
Secretary-General of the United Nations
Unite d Nation Headquarters
NewYork, NY 10017, USA

Villagers and gold mine workers flee from the Irrawaddy Myitsone dam area

VILLAGERS AND GOLD MINE WORKERS FLEE FROM THE MYITSONE DAM AREA AFTER FIGHTING ERUPTED ON MAY 13 AND 14 BETWEEN THE BURMA ARMY AND TROOPS FROOM THE KACHIN INDEPENDENCE ARMY.

Villagers and gold mine workers flee from the Myitsone dam area after fighting erupted on May 13 and 14 between the the Burma army and troops from the Kachin Independence Army.

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Burma army shoots Kachin preacher in the knee

OFFICE OF KACHIN BAPTIST CONVENTION, KBC IN MYITKYINA.

Burma army soldiers shot and injured a Kachin preacher while he was attending a local religious leaders meeting last month. The April 27th incident which left the preacher seriously injured, occurred at Chipwi village north of Myitkyina.

Thursday, May 10, 2012

NDA-K's Ting Ying declares Burma army will wipeout KIA

ZAHKUNG TING YING, FORMER NDA-K LEADER

Zahkung Ting Ying, longtime leader of the now defunct New Democratic Army-Kachin (NDA-K) has predicted that government forces will completely “wipeout” the Kachin Independence Army. Ting Ying's comments were made during a recent meeting with military officials in Pangwa, according to sources in Kachin state.

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Burma Army suffers high casualties along Loije route


 Burma's armed forces suffered high casualties in Kachin State on Monday as troops repeatedly came under attack while traveling on the Bhamo (Manmaw) to Loije road, according to officials with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA).

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Burmese government agrees to talk to KIO in China

BURMESE GOVERNMENT AGREES TO TALK TO KIO DELEGATION IN RUILI. CHINA ON MARCH 8.

MAI JA YANG, Burma — The government of Burma agreed that it will talk with the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) this week in neighboring China, after the two sides could not agree on a location to meet last month.

Saturday, May 5, 2012

Twin blasts in Myitkyina injure two police


May 5 — Two police were injured after twin bombs exploded this morning at the same location in Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin state in Northern Burma.

The explosion occurred on Shwe Hlan-ma (Golden Road) near a roadside restaurant in Tatkone quarter first at about 6 am and then again at 7 am.  The second blast injured police who were investigating the first explosion, said eyewitnesses.

The injured police have been hospitalized in General Public Hospital in Myitkyina, said hospital sources.

Since fighting began last year in Kachin state Myitkyina has experienced a series of explosions.

The government has blamed the armed-wing of the Kachin Independence Organization for the blasts however the group has repeatedly stated it does not target civilian areas.


Burma army flies in reinforcements in bid to retake Pangwa

HELICOPTERS SENT BURMESE TROOPS FROM MYITKYINA TO PANGWA THAT HAS BEEN CIRCLED BY KIA TROOPS SINCE APRIL 26.
HELICOPTERS SENT BURMESE TROOPS FROM MYITKYINA TO PANGWA THAT HAS BEEN CIRCLED BY KIA TROOPS SINCE APRIL 26.

Burma army helicopters airlifted an estimated 200 troops to reinforce government positions near the town of Pangwa last week, as the army tries to retake the town located on the Kachin-China border.

Friday, May 4, 2012

Drugs found at abandoned Burma army post in Kachin state


PIPES USED FOR SMOKING AMPHETAMINES FOUND AT A FORMER BURMA ARMY POST IN LAJA YANG VILLAGE NEAR LAIZA.
A large quantity of amphetamines left behind at a recently abandoned Burma army post is further proof that drug abuse is rampant in the ranks of Burma's armed forces, say officials with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA).

Thursday, May 3, 2012

CPI head meets relocated villagers to win their support for Myitsone dam

LU QIZHOU (CENTER), HEAD OF CPI THE FIRM BEHIND THE MYITSONE DAM PROJECT MEETS WITH RELOCATED VILLAGERS AT AUNG MIN THAR ON APRIL 18 IN AN EFFORT TO CONVINCE THEM TO SUPPORT THE STALLED MEGA DAM.

Villagers, who were forcibly relocated to make way for the Myitsone dam, received a surprise visit last month from the head of the Chinese firm behind the project, in an attempt to convince the villagers to support the stalled mega dam.

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

KIO tightens grip on former NDA-K stronghold Pangwa

 April 30 - Reports from eastern Kachin state indicate that forces loyal to the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) have strengthened their hold on Pangwa, a government controlled town located on the Kachin side of the Sino-Burma border.  For many years Pangwa served as the headquarters of the ceasefire group the National Democratic Army-Kachin (NDA-K).

Fighting has continued in the Pangwa area since late last week when Kachin resistance forces launched an offensive to seize the town. There is still some fighting taking place on the outskirts of Pangwa, along the road to Chipwi, however despite these skirmishes it appears the town is now almost completely under the control of the KIO.

According to KIO sources the siege on Pangwa was initially met with heavy resistance from Burma army troops and their local allies in the government controlled Border Guard Force No. 1001, a unit that consists of many former NDA-K members.

On Friday April 28 army helicopters attacked KIO positions near Pangwa, the KIO however was still able to recover and advance on the town.

 Fighting is also continuing south of Pangwa at Kambaiti, another border town that was also controlled by the NDA-K. Last Thursday morning, KIO forces reportedly destroyed a bridge on the road connecting Kambaiti to the Kachin state capital Myitikyina.

KIO forces have had Kambaiti surrounded since the end of last week and KIO officers in the field predict the town, some 20 miles east of Myitkyina, will soon fall.

Capture of Pangwa symbolic milestone for KIO
The KIO's reported capture of Pangwa marks a significant milestone for the five decade old organization, as the town was for many years the headquarters of the NDA-K, itself a successor to a breakaway KIO faction.

In 1968 KIO commanders Zahkung Ting Ying (also Zakhung) and Layawk Zalum (also Zelum) split from the KIO, then led by anti-communist Zau Seng, to form an alliance with the Burma Communist Party (BCP).

With the assistance of their new communist comrades, Zahkung Ting Ying and Layawk Zalum' formed 'War Zone 101' a unit which fought under the BCP. Following the dissolution of the BCP in 1989, War Zone 101 was transformed into the National Democratic Army-Kachin (NDA-K) and a ceasefire was signed with the junta in Rangoon then known as SLORC (State Law and Order Restoration Council).

The lucrative ceasefire agreement enabled the NDA-K and its leaders to profit from the trade in timber and other goods that passed through Kambaiti and Pangwa to China. Tensions emerged in September 2005 when a rebellious faction led by Layawk Zalum briefly seized control of the NDA-K command before Zahkung was able to reassert his authority. The September 2005 mutiny was followed some 8 months later by a similar rebellion against Zakhung's leadership in May 2006. The second mutiny also failed but left Zahkung considerably weaker.

The challenge to Zahkung's leadership reportedly stemmed from the fact the NDA-K chief wasn't sharing the profits derived from the group's lucrative stake in the region's border trade. Large sections of the NDA-K rank and file were also upset that Zahkung continued to rely on Chinese soldiers for his own personal security.

In 2009 under Zahkung's leadership the NDA-K officially ceased to exist when its standing army of about 1,000 troops was officially absorbed by the government controlled border guard force. Zahkung was later elected to Burma's parliament as an independent MP in November 2010.

Although over the past few years Zahkung has continued to show loyalty to Burma's government by publicly criticizing the KIO in state media and penning open letters to the KIO demanding the group respect Naypyidaw's authority, Zahkung was reported to have been put under house arrest in Myitkinya in June of last year when fighting resumed between the KIO and the Burma army.  Zahkung's arrest came about despite the fact he hadn't been an active member of the KIO for 43 years.

According to KIO sources on the front-line, over the past few days many ex-NDA-K troops have surrendered to the KIO. Upon capture the ex-NDA-K troops are said to have asked to rejoin the KIO.