Landmines exploding on Panglong path to peace
The historic quest for nationwide peace in newly democratic Myanmar has hit serious roadblocks, just days after the launch of the 21st-century Panglong Conference. Fragile truces that enabled the government and armed ethnic groups to sit down together o
The Panglong Conference got underway in the capital Nay Pyi Taw already under a shadow, with the armed Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) threatening retaliation against government Border Guard Forces (BGF) for harassing its patrols.
The DKBA, which split from the predominantly Christian Karen National Union (KNU) and has sided with the Myanmar military since 1997, has a history of breaking peace deals. This time, it clashed with BGF militias on September 3 in the Mae Tha Waw area of Karen state, close to the Thai border. Each side accused the other of starting the fighting, which has reportedly seen dozens either killed or seriously injured and some 4,000 locals flee their homes.
The clashes have erupted close to territory controlled by the KNU, which has called on the government under Aung San Suu Kyi to quickly contain the violence, which is quickly sapping locals’ faith in the peace process.
Meanwhile the KNU, which has fought with government troops for more than half a century, is embroiled in a separate conflict with another armed ethnic group, the Mon National Liberation Army (MNLA). Battles broke out on September 8 in the South’s Taninthayi Division between the two ethnic armies, which have a history of conflict dating back some three decades, the Yangon-based Mizzima news outlet reported.
The area is now a Mon stronghold but was once under Karen control. The latest tension between the two groups sprang up in August when Mon militia prevented KNU troops from transporting timber across their territory.
These latest outbreaks demonstrate the complex nature of Myanmar’s conflicts, with decades of grievances blocking the path to peace. Ethnic groups are not only fighting the government for self-determination but also clashing with each other over territory. These deep waters are muddied further by ongoing sectarian conflicts between Buddhists and Muslims.
Temporary truces between the ruling junta and ethnic armies have come and gone since the 1990s. When forced to join the Border Guards under the 2008 military-drafted constitution, groups including the DKBA tore up the latest ceasefire and resumed fighting.
The previous government under President Thein Sein succeeded in getting just eight armed groups to sign a ceasefire deal in October, before a landslide election win saw Aung San Suu Kyi’s government take power.
Her Panglong Conference has drawn more armed groups to the table, but with them have come more questions. How, for instance, can the talks solve the dispute between the Karen and the Mon? While the KNU has signed the nationwide ceasefire agreement, the Mon forces have not. How can the new Panglong effort find a path to peace even as its parties are still fighting?
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