Disappointment as Kachin parties refuse to cooperate

Dec-19-2014: Second talk for unity of Kachin political parties at YMCA in Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin state

A committee comprised of Kachin concerned about next year's national election has issued a statement lamenting the refusal of Kachin political parties to cooperate with each other. The statement by the group whose name translates into English as the “The Committee of Public Voice for the Unity of all Kachin parties” warned that by refusing to cooperate the Kachin parties are doomed to cancel each other out, thus aiding the ruling party.

Burma army seizes KIO post in Hpakant

A soldier from LID 66 takes position in Kachin's jade-rich Hpakant.

Troops from Burma's army took control of a small outpost held by the Kachin Independence Organization's (KIO) armed wing this past weekend in western Kachin state's jade rich Hpakant Township. The post which was controlled by troops from the Kachin Independence Army's (KIA) Battalion 6 under the group's Brigade 2 fell on Sunday shortly after government forces launched a barrage of heavy artillery at it.

Burma army attack kills 2 KIA soldiers

A KIA soldier from battalion 26 in Mohnyin township in western Kachin state was killed in attack of government force on Nov 19, 2014

Two soldiers from the Kachin Independence Organization's (KIO) armed wing were killed following a surprise attack by government forces on December 19th, the group acknowledged. The deadly incident took place in Kachin state's Daw Hpum Yang sub-township. According to Lah Nan, the KIO's chief spokesperson, one Kachin Independence Army (KIA) soldier was also seized during the raid on the small KIA outpost.

Rights groups urge army drop suit against grieving Kachin father

Ja Seng Ing, 14-year-old Kachin school girl was shot dead by Burma army on Sept. 13, 2012

A coalition of international human rights groups including Fortify Rights, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have called on the Burma army to drop a lawsuit against a Kachin man from Hpakant who is facing prison for filing a complaint with the Myanmar National Human Rights Commission (MNHRC) over the shooting death of his 14-year-old daughter.  The call came in an open letter sent to President Thein Sein earlier this month. 

Delay in permits behind Kachin aid convoy halt says UN

Kachin refugees in Laiza, the de facto capital of KIO in Kachin state, northern Burma

Due to the refusal by Burma government authorities to grant the necessary permits United Nations (UN) convoys have not been able to deliver aid to Kachin refugees in northern Shan and Kachin States for the past two months, says the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) in a statement released December 16th.

Fresh military tensions force villagers to flee Hpakant

Hundreds of villagers in Kachin State's jade rich Hpakant district have fled their homes since December 13th because of a serious rise in tensions between the army and units from the Kachin Independence Organization's (KIO) similarly named armed wing based in the area, local residents tell the Kachin News Group.

Halting UN aid to Kachin refugees will have dire impact say aid groups

 Halting UN aid to Kachin refugees will have dire impact say aid groups

The suspension of United Nations (UN) aid convoys to refugee camps in Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) territory will lead to a “major crisis” in a very short time aid groups warn.

KIA burns huge drug haul in northern Shan state

The KIA burned huge drug in northern Shan state of Burma on Dec 8, 2014

A drug eradication committee operated by the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) Battalion 9 under the group's 4th Brigade, burned over US $100,000 worth of confiscated drugs in northern Shan state last week.

KIO says it will boycott meeting with Army in Myitkyina

 Aung Min with KIO flag, government 's chief peace negotiator

Citing the army's refusal to provide an adequate explanations for the November 19th shelling attack on a Kachin Independence Army (KIA) officer training school which killed 23 cadets, the KIA's political wing has vowed to boycott a previously scheduled monthly meeting with the army in Myitkyina this month.

Despite threats Kachin family maintains Tatmadaw killed daughter

During a press conference in Rangoon last Saturday the father of Ja Seng Ing, a slain 14-year-old Kachin student from western Kachin's state Hpakant township, called on the Thein Sein government to immediately form a commission to investigate the 13th September 2012 shooting death of his daughter.

Kachin in Thailand celebrate King's birthday with Manau festival

 Kachin in Thailand celebrated King's birthday with Manau festival in Ban Mai Samakee in Chiang Dao district in northern Thailand on Dec. 5, 2014

Kachin residents of Ban Mai Samakee village in Northern Thailand's Chiang Dao district held a four day Manau festival this past weekend to honour the Thai monarch's birthday.

Kachin civil society groups call for army to withdraw

A coalition of 15 civil society organizations (CSOs) based in northern Burma's Kachin state publicly called on the Thein Sein government to withdraw army troops deployed in an ongoing offensive against the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) and other ethnic armed groups.

UWSA, SSPP and NDAA Say Burma Army attack has damaged peace prospects

KIA officer training school, Laiza, Kachin state of northern Burma

Three ethnic groups issued a statement voicing their concern that the ongoing peace process would deteriorate because of the Burma Army’s artillery shelling of a Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) officer training school on19th November.

Burma army shells land near Kachin IDP camps

Je Yang camp near KIO capital Laiza in eastern Kachin state in northern Burma

Over the last three days Burma army units stationed in Kachin state have repeatedly fired shells that landed near refugee camps situated in territory controlled by Kachin Independence Organization (KIO). No refugees were hurt by the shelling however the firing of shells near the camps has caused a great deal of concern among the refugees and aid workers, the Kachin News Group has learned.

Myitkyina residents defy authorities to mourn 23 Laiza cadets

Despite pressure from local authorities, a large crowd of several thousand mourners gathered in the Kachin state capital of Myitkyina over the weekend to honor the 23 trainees who were killed when their training ground near Laiza was hit by Burma army shell.

Laiza shelling fatalities were from KIO allies, ABSDF, AA, CNF, TNLA

All of those killed in Wednesday's shelling attack on an training ground near the Kachin Independence Organization's Laiza headquarters were from the Kachin armed group's allies and not in fact the KIO as had been initially reported. A number of KIO personnel including trainers were however seriously injured in the blast.

Government claims Laiza shelling was a “warning shot”

Burma Army's Light Infantry Division No. 66 troops are taking position near KIA battalion 6 in Hpakant jade mine, Kachin state

Following the Burma's army shelling of a Kachin Independence Army (KIA) training ground near Laiza on Wednesday government officials have repeatedly claimed that the lethal attack was not deliberate. A claim hotly contested by the KIA and its political wing the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO).

KIO, UNFC condemn Laiza shelling

The Kachin Independent Organization (KIO) issued a terse statement on Friday condemning the army's shelling of a training ground near Laiza 48 hours earlier that resulted in the death of 23 cadets and injured 20 more.

UNFC ethnic alliance clears up “misunderstanding” with Naypyidaw

 UNFC Vice-chairman Nai Hong Tar

The largest alliance of ethnic armed groups in Burma, the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC) claims that it has been able to clear up what the group characterized as a “misunderstanding” with officials in Naypyidaw about the group's policy.

Burma Army shelling of Laiza training ground was deliberate says KIO

KIA officer training school and bodies of students

A shell fired by Burma army forces hit a Kachin Independence Army (KIA) training ground near Laiza mid-day Wednesday killing 22 young men on impact and injuring 16 more. The victims of the shelling were taking part in an officer training program run by the KIA, the armed-wing of the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO).

KIA fight with Burma Army in Kachin state

One of an officer from Burma Army's LID 88 which is currently deploying in Man Wing, the area between Kachin state and Shan state

Troops from the Kachin Independence Organization's (KIO) armed wing clashed with Burma army forces on November 16th in eastern Kachin state, according to an officer with group.

Yuzana company destroys farm road in Hugawng valley

Yuzana company farm in Kachin state's Hugawng Valley

Staff from the Yuzana company, one of Burma's largest conglomerates, destroyed a road constructed by local farmers in Wa Ra Zup village in Kachin State's Hugawng (also Hukaung) valley last Friday.

Hpakant jade company offers compensation to slain man’s family

Poeple of raw jade (locally called yemase) collectors at Hpakant in western Kachin state

The Thaukpa Kyae jade mining company in Kachin State Hpakant's township has offered 20 million kyat (USD $ 19,531.2) as compensation to the family of a 20 year old man who was killed on the job. Hpuklawng Gum Ja Awng, also known as Ze Lum, was killed on the evening of October 31. The company claims his death was the result of an accident however the victim's family disputes this explanation.

RFA Kachin Language TV Program, 2014 November 1st Week

Kachin church groups continue drug eradication campaign

 A Church's anti-drug poster with Kachin language on Ledo Road in Hugawng Valley in western Kachin state

Across Kachin state local drug eradication committees backed by church groups are continuing their drug elimination efforts amidst what many Kachin say is a full blown crisis in their state.

KIO Accountant Arrested for Collecting Tax in Hpakant

Burma Army's Light Infantry Division No. 66 soldiers take position near Aung Ba Lay post of KIA Batalion 6 in Hpakant, western Kachin state

 A Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) accountant employed by the KIO's armed wing, the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and an alleged civilian associate, were arrested by Burma army personnel last week after being accused of unlawfully collecting war funds, according to local residents in Kachin state's jade rich Hpakant district where the arrests took place.

KNU confirms withdrawal from ethnic armed alliance

KNU leader Mutu Say Poe

The Karen National Union (KNU), Burma's oldest armed ethnic group, confirmed last week following a meeting of the group's Central Standing Committee (CSC) an earlier decision to withdraw its membership in Burma's largest armed ethnic alliance, the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC).

RFA Kachin Language TV Program, 2014 October 4th Week

Kachin activists want jailed refugees released

Ma Hka, a lawyer and former member of National Democratic Force (NDF) party

Lawyer, activists and various civil society groups held a prayer service on Tuesday in Myitkyina, the Kachin state capital, where they repeated calls for the immediate release of two jailed Kachin refugees, Lahpai Gam and Brang Yung.

Burma army clashes with KIO and its allies in Shan state

Troops from Burma's armed forces and those from the Federal Union Army (FUA), an alliance backed by the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), engaged in repeated clashes in northeast Shan state earlier this month. The clashes began on October 15th and lasted for several days.

Burma army orders 1,000 from their land in Hpakant, fighting expected

Burma army's LID No. 66 soldiers in a celebration of Kachin Baptist church in Hpakant, Kachin state, northern Burma

Villagers living in Ginsi Hkaw (also Kanzi hall), Awng Ba Li (also Aung Bar Lay) and Tang Gau, three villages in Kachin state's jade rich Hpakant district, were ordered by local military authorities to leave their homes by 6 pm on Tuesday, the Kachin News Group has learned.

More villagers vote against Yuzana company in Kachin state's Hugawng Valley

Oct 8, 2014 The poll was collected in Nawng Mi village in Hugawng Valley in western Kachin state, Burma

An overwhelming 98% of farmers in two villages in western Kachin state's Hugawng Valley (also spelled Hukaung Valley) voted against the Yuzana company's continued presence in the ecologically sensitive area during a community plebiscite held on October 8th.

KIO closes Hukaung amber mines following tensions with Burma army forces

 People are returning homes after the KIA 2nd Brigade shut down amber mines in Hukaung Valley in western Kachin state, northern Burma

The Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) and its armed wing closed several amber mines operating in the group's territory in western Kachin state's Hukaung (Hugawng) Valley last week. The mine shut-downs come after increasing tension between the KIO and Burmese government forces in the area, KIO officials tell the Kachin News Group.

Pro Myanmar government militias fighting KIO growing opium says rights group

A poster of church-led drug eradition is put in front of a Kachin Baptist Church in Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin state

A new report released by the Kachin Women's Association of Thailand (KWAT) says Burma's military is allowing pro-government militias operating in Kachin and Shan states to grow opium in exchange for their support in the army's campaign against the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), a group that has been in conflict with the central government since a ceasefire broke down in June 2011.

RFA Kachin Language TV Program, 2014 October 1st Week

Latest round of Burma's peace talks end with little progress

 President Thein Sein's and his chief negotiator Aung Min have been pushing to secure a national ceasefire deal with all of Burma's various armed group before November when dozens of world leaders including US President Barrack Obama will be visiting Burma as part of the ASEAN summit.

Talks between the Burmese government's Union Peace-making Work Committee (UPWC) and the National Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT), a group representing most of Burma's armed ethnic groups, wrapped up on Friday in Rangoon after five days of discussion which proved to be largely fruitless.

Tay Za funded Thai chopper searching for Putao climbers goes missing

A missing Thai chopper in Kachin state's Hkakabo Razi in Putao district. Photo: www.htoo.com

Burmese billionaire Tay Za's search and rescue effort to locate two lost climbers in northern Kachin state appears to have taken a turn for the worst with the controversial blacklisted tycoon's Htoo Foundation now admitting they have lost contact with a helicopter that was chartered to assist with the search. Communication with the helicopter was lost shortly after it left Putao on Saturday. It was carrying three passengers including the Thai pilot.

RFA Kachin Language TV Program, 2014 September 4th Week

Burma army detains KIO officer in western Kachin state

Two Burma Army's Light Infantry Division No. 66 soldiers take security in Hpakant jade mine, western Kachin state

A civilian official from the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) and two men he was with were detained by Burma army troops on September 20th in Kamaing sub-township in western Kachin state, according to local people living in the area.

RFA Kachin Language TV Program, 2014 September 3rd Week

UN expert blames civil society groups for Burma's census trouble

UN census expert Paul Cheung blames civil society for census problems (UN photo)

Dr Paul Cheung, who serves as the chair of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) committee advising Burma's government on the recent census believes that civil society and rights groups are to blame for the numerous controversies that arose while Burma's census was being conducted, the first such census in over three decades.

Burmese tycoon Tay Za joins search for missing climbers in Kachin state

Tay Za (pictired right), billionaire mountain climbing enthusiast and arms dealer (Credit Facebook)

Burmese billionaire tycoon Tay Za is leading the search and rescue effort to find two Burmese climbers who appear to have lost their way somewhere on Hkakabo Razi, in northern Kachin state near Putao, AFP reported on Wednesday.

Clashes between Burma army and the KIO largely reduced, says KIO rep

Burmese soldiers of Light Infanty Division No. 66 soldiers secure Hpakant jade mine in Kachin state, northern Burma

Thanks in part to a committee formed between the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) and the government that is tasked with reducing tensions in northern Burma, armed clashes between KIO forces and the military have been reduced significantly, said Lahpai Gun Ja, a member of the KIO’s technical team.

UNFC would welcome KNU return to ethnic armed alliance

UNFC chairman and KIO vicd-president Gen. N'ban La speaking to reporters at the 2014 UNFC conference

The recently re-elected chairman of the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC), a coalition of Burma's ethnic armed groups, says that the Karen National Union (KNU) is welcome to return to the alliance, this after the KNU's chairman and several of his subordinates walked out of a UNFC conference in dramatic fashion last weekend.

RFA Kachin Language TV Program, 2014 September 1st Week

KNU chairman walks out of UNFC conference

Duwa Bawmwang Laraw, head of Foregin Affairs of UNFC and a KIO representative was interviewed byn www.kachinnews.com editor Naw Din on Aug. 30, 2014.

A meeting of representatives from the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC), the coalition of Burma's ethnic armed groups was thrown into confusion on Sunday, when the Chairman of the Karen National Union (KNU) and several of his of subordinates walked out of the proceedings at 11 AM.

RFA Kachin Language TV Program, 2014 August 4th Week

NGO worked with Myitsone dam firm to establish Kachin wildlife park in NDA-K area

The logo of Fauna & Flora International (FFI) and a snub-nosed monkey in Kachin state, northern Burma.

Fauna & Flora International (FFI), a British environmental organization cooperated with the Burmese subsidiary of a major Chinese dam firm to establish the Imawbum National Park in eastern Kachin state which aims to protect the Myanmar snub-nosed monkey.  The rare species was first discovered by FFI researchers in Kachin state in 2010.

KIO's Gun Maw other ethnic leaders meet Suu Kyi

Maj-Gen Sumlut Gun Maw (sencond From left), the KIO's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Photo: NLD

A group of senior representatives from Burma's armed rebel groups including the Kachin Independence Organization's (KIO) Minister of Foreign Affairs, Major General Sumlut Gun Maw met with Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi at her home on Monday.

Repeated clashes between army and KIA in Kachin ruby mine

KIA soldiers from battalion 6 Hpakant jade mining township, western Kachin state in northern Burma.

Armed clashes between government forces and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) broke out twice over the past few days, according to KIA officials and local residents.  The KIA is the armed wing of the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), who has been in conflict with the central government since a 17 year ceasefire ended in June 2011.

RFA Kachin Language TV Program, 2014 August 1st Week

Ethnic armed groups summit in Laiza ends with call for federal union

Leaders from 16 Burma's ethnic armed groups held a summit on a nationwide ceasefire agreement in Laiza from July 25 - 29 - 2014.

A summit of representatives from 16 of Burma's armed ethnic groups ended on Tuesday following four days of talks in Laiza, the capital of the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO). The KIO was hosting the summit which is the third meeting of its kind to be held in less than a year. A previous round of talks was held in Laiza in November last year while another meeting was held in the Karen National Union (KNU) territory in January.

China denies abandoning Yunnan-Burma rail line

Mr. Yang Houlan, the Chinese ambassador to Burma

China's ambassador to Burma Yang Houlan has denied a recent news report indicating that a planned train line running from Yunnan to Burma's Rakhine (Arakan) coast had been cancelled. According to China's state owned Xinhua news agency when Ambassador Yang was asked about the project during a press conference in Yangon on Thursday “Yang denied the abandonment of the project by the Chinese side”.

Burma's ethnic armed groups meet in Laiza for peace conference

Laiza, the capital of KIO in Kachin state, northern Burma

Senior representatives from 16 of Burma's armed ethnic groups this week arrived in Laiza, the Kachin Independence Organization's (KIO) de facto headquarters, for talks aimed at solidifying a united rebel front in advance of further negotiations between the armed groups and the central government later this year. The talks began on Thursday and are expected to last till early next week.

KIA soldier killed by Burma army, 2 KIA officers arrested

Lt-Col Naw Bu, one of the KIA respresentatives serving on the joint committee established in May to help resolve tensions between the army an the KIA.

One Kachin Independence Army (KIA) soldier was killed and two KIA officers arrested by Burma government soldiers in Kachin state late last month, according to KIA officials.

Burmese troops and KIA repeatedly clash in southern Kachin state

Fighting between government forces and troops form the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) took place nearly every day last week in the Manwing area of southern Kachin state. The fighting began shortly after a military column entered into an area controlled by the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), the KIO's armed wing.

Police question Kachin Baptist leader after peace demonstration

KBC president Rev. Gyung Hkawng (left) and General Secretary Rev. Dr. Samson (right) led a peaceful demonstration on 3rd anniversary of Kachin war in northern Burma, which fell on June 9,2014. Photo : Kachin News Group

Police authorities in Myitkyina, the Kachin state capital questioned Reverend Samson, general secretary of Kachin Baptist Convention (KBC) following a church led demonstration marking the 3rd anniversary of the Kachin war which fell on June 9th, according to church officials.

Villagers in northern Shan state suffer after Tatmadaw's Kachin offensive

A  Htay from Nam Jarng village being carried away on May 29 after she was reportedly shot by Burma army soldiers from LIB 88. She died the next day from her injuries (Cred SHRF)

Life has become extremely difficult for large numbers of villagers in northern Shan state who have had to endure great hardship since April 10th when Burma's military launched an offensive against the Kachin Independence Army (KIA). The offensive which took place in parts of northern Shan state and southern Kachin state close to the Chinese border, involved more than 1,000 troops from Light Infantry Division 88, according to a recent report released by the Shan Human Rights Foundation (SHRF).