Protection and Settlement of Burmese Border Residents in Large-Scale Influx Situations

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Protection and Settlement of Burmese Border Residents in Large-Scale Influx Situations Chapter 7 Protection and Settlement of Burmese Border Residents in Large-Scale Influx Situations In 2009, border residents of Kokang State, Myanmar, entered China on a large scale due to armed conflicts in Myanmar. Again in 2011 and 2013, large numbers of residents of Kachin State, Myanmar, entered China. In accordance with in- ternational laws, these people in large-scale influx situations were considered Burmese border residents, rather than refugees. However, the Chinese Govern- ment provided these border residents with daily necessities and handled the large-scale influx properly, in accordance with the Emergency Response Law of the People’s Republic of China 2007 [Tufa Shijian Yingdui Fa] and other laws, policies and regulations on response plans of foreign-related emergencies and humanitarian spirit. Since the underlying armed conflicts were the internal affairs of Myanmar, they should be solved through consultation by the con- cerned parties in that country. Border residents in large-scale influx situations should be handled as foreign-related emergencies. The border stability main- tenance mechanisms and plans for the settlement and persuasion for return of border residents should be launched in accordance with emergency response plans. 7.1 Large-Scale Influx of Burmese Border Residents into China Myanmar consists of seven Divisions and seven States. Barma people make up about 70 percent of the population of all 135 ethnic groups in Myanmar. The Barma people constitutes the main population of the seven Divisions, while the ethnic minorities constitute the main population of the seven States. In the 1920’s, Britain, which had occupied India, Myanmar, occupied most Jingpo tribes, and renamed the Jingpo people as Kachins. In 1960, China and Myan- mar reached a consensus during the Sino-Myanmar Border Negotiations that the disputed territory along the northern border between China and Myanmar including the Kachin State should be recognised as Burmese territory. Thus, Jingpo people and Barma people actually share the same ancestry, origin, be- liefs, language and customs, although these two peoples live on opposite sides of the border. Since the 1960’s, Kachin State has been highly independent and autonomous. In 1961, Kachin Independence Army was established. © koninklijke brill nv, leiden, ���0 | doi:10.1163/978900441�187_008 <UN> Protection and Settlement of Burmese Border Residents 365 In 1989, four armed forces, formed from the largest anti-government people’s army of the Communist Party of Burma [Mian Gong Renmin Jun], each con- cluded ceasefire agreements with the military government in Myanmar. Pursu- ant to these agreements, these armed forces established the autonomous gov- ernments of Shan State Special Region 1 (Kokang State), Shan State Special Region 2 (Wa State), Kachin State Special Region 1 (New Democratic Army- Kachin) and Shan State Eastern Special Region 4. In February 1994, the Myan- mar government recognised that area controlled by the Kachin Independence Army as Kachin State Special Region 2 (regions including Laiza and Maijayang). Due to their high degree of autonomy, the special regions became the biggest obstacle to the economic development and political stability of Myanmar.1 In May 2008, a new Constitution was adopted in Myanmar, which provided that only the six ethnic regions enjoy autonomy, but that government officials of these regions were required to accept administration and appointment of the central government. Since 2009, the government forces of Myanmar oppressed autonomous regions by force, demanding these regions to join Border Guard Forces of Myanmar and accept the integration and regulation of the govern- ment. The Kachin Independence Army firmly refused to be integrated.2 In August 2009, to combat drugs, government forces in Myanmar launched a three-week armed conflict with Shan State Special Region 1 (Kokang State). As a result, nearly 700 soldiers of the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army in Shan State and tens of thousands of border residents entered Zhenk- ang County and Gengma County in Yunnan Province, China. Of this total, more than 13,000 persons from Myanmar were protected, assisted and rescued in China by the Chinese government. Some of them lived with their friends and relatives, while some Chinese border residents who did business or worked for others in Kokang State returned home.3 Seven hundred soldiers from the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army were handled as people in large-scale influx situations after voluntarily surrendering their firearms. In 1 Ran Jin, ‘Kachin Warfare – Myanmar Government and Kachin Independence Army Wres- tling for Control’ [Keqin Xiaoyan – Miandian Zhengfu He Keqin Dulijun De Kongzhiquan Zhi Zhan], Southern Weekly, 5 July 2011, http://news.ifeng.com/world/detail_2011_07/01/7379029_0. shtml (accessed 28 July 2019). 2 Zhang Jie, ‘Kachin Warfare: Dilemma Faced by Myanmar in Reconciliation Among Ethnic Groups’, Oriental Morning Post, http://finance.ifeng.com/money/roll/20110615/4151819.shtml (accessed 28 July 2019). 3 Wang Yan, Yang Yueping and Wu Xiaoyang, ‘Three Projectiles Shot into China, Causing One Dead and Two Injured Among Chinese Border Residents’ [Miandian San Fa Paodan Sheru Zhongguo Jingnei, Zaocheng Zhongfang Bianmin Yisi Liangshang], Xinhua Net, 30 August 2009, http://china.huanqiu.com/roll/2009-08/561698.html (accessed 28 July 2019). <UN>.
Recommended publications
  • Myanmar/Burma - Kachin
    Myanmar/Burma - Kachin minorityrights.org/minorities/kachin/ June 19, 2015 Profile The Kachin encompass a number of ethnic groups speaking almost a dozen distinct languages belonging to the Tibeto-Burman linguistic family who inhabit the same region in the northern part of Burma on the border with China, mainly in Kachin State. Strictly speaking, these languages are not necessarily closely related, and the term Kachin at times is used to refer specifically to the largest of the groups (the Kachin or Jingpho/Jinghpaw) or to the whole grouping of Tibeto-Burman speaking minorities in the region, which include the Maru, Lisu, Lashu, etc. The exact Kachin population is unknown due to the absence of reliable census data in Burma for more than 60 years. Most estimates suggest there may in the vicinity of 1 million Kachin in the country. The Kachin, as well as the Chin, are one of Burma’s largest Christian minorities: though once again difficult to assess, it is generally thought that between two-thirds and 90 per cent of Kachin are Christians, with others following animist practices or Buddhists. Historical context It is generally thought that the Kachin gradually moved south from their ancestral land on the Tibetan plateau through Yunnan in southern China to arrive in the northern region of what would become Burma sometime during the fifteenth or sixteenth centuries, making the Kachin relative newcomers. Their position in this borderland part of South-East Asia meant that the Kachin were often outside of the sphere of influence of Burman kings. Their strength was such by the Third Anglo-Burmese War of 1885 that, while the British were taking Mandalay, the Kachin were getting ready to take advantage of the Burman kingdom’s weakness to attack and take over Mandalay themselves.
    [Show full text]
  • A Short Outline of the History of the Communist Party of Burma
    A SHORT OUTLINE OF THE HISTORY OF .· THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF BURMA I Burma was an independent kingdom before annexation by the British imperialist in 1824. In 1885 British imperialist annexed whole of Burma. Since that time, Burmese people have never given up their fight for regaining their independence. Various armed uprisings and other legal forms of strug­ gle were used by the Burmese people in their fight to regain indep~ndence. In 19~8 the biggest and the broadest anti-British general _strike over-ran the whole country. The workers were on strike, the peasants marched up to Rangoon and all the students deserted their class-room to join the workers and peasants. It was an unprecendented anti-British movement in Burma popularly called in Burmese as "1300th movement". Out of this national and class struggle of the Burmese people and working class emerges the Communist Party of Burma. II The Communist Party of Burma was of!i~ially founded on 15th ~_!l_g~s_b 1939 by _!!nitil)K all MarxisLgr.9J!l!§ in Burma, III From the day of inception, CPB launched an active anti-British struggles up till 1941. It was the core of CPB leadership that led ahti­ British struggles up till the second world war. IV In 1941, after the Hitlerites treacherously attacked the Soviet Union, CPB changed its tactics and directed its blows against the fascists. v In 1942, Burma was invaded by the Japanese fascists. From that time onwards up till 1945, CPB worked unt~ringly to oppose the Japanese fa~ists 1 .
    [Show full text]
  • KACHIN STATE, BHAMO DISTRICT Bhamo Township Report
    THE REPUBLIC OF THE UNION OF MYANMAR The 2014 Myanmar Population and Housing Census KACHIN STATE, BHAMO DISTRICT Bhamo Township Report Department of Population Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population October 2017 The 2014 Myanmar Population and Housing Census Kachin State, Bhamo District Bhamo Township Report Department of Population Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population Office No.48 Nay Pyi Taw Tel: +95 67 431062 www.dop.gov.mm October 2017 Figure 1: Map of Kachin State, showing the townships Bhamo Township Figures at a Glance 1 Total Population 135,877 2 Population males 66,718 (49.1%) Population females 69,159 (50.9%) Percentage of urban population 43.2% Area (Km2) 1,965.8 3 Population density (per Km2) 69.1 persons Median age 25.2 years Number of wards 13 Number of village tracts 45 Number of private households 24,161 Percentage of female headed households 29.7% Mean household size 4.9 persons 4 Percentage of population by age group Children (0 – 14 years) 30.5% Economically productive (15 – 64 years) 64.8% Elderly population (65+ years) 4.7% Dependency ratios Total dependency ratio 54.2 Child dependency ratio 46.9 Old dependency ratio 7.3 Ageing index 15.5 Sex ratio (males per 100 females) 97 Literacy rate (persons aged 15 and over) 94.7% Male 96.8% Female 93.0% People with disability Number Per cent Any form of disability 7,448 5.5 Walking 2,977 2.2 Seeing 4,114 3.0 Hearing 2,262 1.7 Remembering 2,380 1.8 Type of Identity Card (persons aged 10 and over) Number Per cent Citizenship Scrutiny 81,655 74.7 Associate Scrutiny
    [Show full text]
  • Analysis of the FPNCC/Northern Alliance and Myanmar Conflict Dynamics
    Analysis of the FPNCC/Northern Alliance and Myanmar Conflict Dynamics acleddata.com/2018/07/21/analysis-of-the-fpncc-northern-alliance-and-myanmar-conflict-dynamics/ Elliott Bynum July 21, 2018 With the Myanmar military pressuring all ethnic armed organizations (EAOs) to sign the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA), non-signatory EAOs have responded by forming a loose military alliance, called the Northern Alliance, to strengthen their position against the military. As with many alliances in Myanmar’s history, the cohesiveness and long-term viability of the alliance is uncertain. Increased military operations by the Myanmar military against the groups in this alliance, particularly the increased use of remote violence, has resulted in the alliance groups shifting their tactics both politically and militarily. In 2016, four EAOs formed the Northern Alliance. The driver behind the formation of the Northern Alliance was the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) which has been in conflict with the Myanmar military for several decades. From 1994-2011, the KIA had a bilateral ceasefire agreement with the Myanmar military which held. The conflict reignited in 2011 after the KIA rejected the military’s Border Guard Force (BGF) scheme which would have placed the KIA under the control of the military. At the time, the Myanmar military also had increased its presence in the Kachin region to guard the Chinese construction of the Myitsone Hydropower Dam which exacerbated tensions, leading eventually to the start of the current war. The KIA has since sought to strengthen its position by providing training and support to the Arakan Army (AA), the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA).
    [Show full text]
  • A Kachin Case Study
    MUSEUMS, DIASPORA COMMUNITIES AND DIASPORIC CULTURES A KACHIN CASE STUDY HELEN MEARS PHD 2019 0 Abstract This thesis adds to the growing body of literature on museums and source communities through addressing a hitherto under-examined area of activity: the interactions between museums and diaspora communities. It does so through a focus on the cultural practices and museum engagements of the Kachin community from northern Myanmar. The shift in museum practice prompted by increased interaction with source communities from the 1980s onwards has led to fundamental changes in museum policy. Indeed, this shift has been described as “one of the most important developments in the history of museums” (Peers and Brown, 2003, p.1). However, it was a shift informed by the interests and perspectives of an ethnocentric museology, and, for these reasons, analysis of its symptoms has remained largely focussed on the museum institution rather than the communities which historically contributed to these institutions’ collections. Moreover, it was a shift which did not fully take account of the increasingly mobile and transnational nature of these communities. This thesis, researched and written by a museum curator, was initiated by the longstanding and active engagement of Kachin people with historical materials in the collections of Brighton Museum & Art Gallery. In closely attending to the cultural interests and habits of overseas Kachin communities, rather than those of the Museum, the thesis responds to Christina Kreps’ call to researchers to “liberate our thinking from Eurocentric notions of what constitutes the museum and museological behaviour” (2003, p.x). Through interviews with individual members of three overseas Kachin communities and the examination of a range of Kachin-related cultural productions, it demonstrates the extent to which Kachin people, like museums, are highly engaged in heritage and cultural preservation, albeit in ways which are distinctive to normative museum practices of collecting, display and interpretation.
    [Show full text]
  • Download Download
    StudyontheInteractionoftheSinicizationofChristianityand theReconstructionofCrossGborderEthnicMinoritiesƳCulturesinYunnan〔1〕 ZhiyingGAOandDongleiWANG (YunnanUniversityandYunnanUniversityofFinanceandEconomics,Kunming,YunnanProvince,P.R.China) Abstract :TheSinicizationofChristianity,whichisthedevelopingstrategyandpracticeto makeChristianityadaptto Chineseculture.ItcorrespondstotheChristianizationofChineseethnic minoritypeoplewhobelievedinChristianity. Fromtheperspectiveofculturalinteraction,borrowingandblending,thestudyexploresthe motivation,processand characteristicsoftheinteractivedevelopmentbetweenthelocalizationandcontextualizationofChristianityin Yunnan ethnicminorities ‘areasandtheChristianizationofethnic minorities’culturesbyhistoricalcombingandsynchronic comparison.Mostly between Christianity and ethnic minoritiesƳ traditional cultures had experienced from the estrangement,andcoexistedwitheachotherandblendingprocess,andfinishedtheChristianfrom “in”tothetransitionof “again”,soastorealizetheSinicizationalcharacteristicsoftheregional,national,butalsomaketheborderethniccultural reconstruct. KeyWords :Yunnanethnicminorities;Sinicization;Christianization;Interactivedevelopment Author :GaoZhiying,Professor,PhD,CenterforStudiesofChineseSouthwestƳsBorderlandEthnicMinoritiesofYunnan University.Tel:13888072229Email:2296054891@qq.com WangDonglei,ViceProfessor,PhD,SchoolofInternational LanguagesandCulturesofYunnanUniversityofFinanceandEconomics.Tel:15887015580Email:1609766878@qq.com Ⅰ.TheOriginoftheTopic JustasZhuoXinpingsaid,ItisnecessaryforforeignreligionssuchasBuddhism,Christianity
    [Show full text]
  • The Union Report the Union Report : Census Report Volume 2 Census Report Volume 2
    THE REPUBLIC OF THE UNION OF MYANMAR The 2014 Myanmar Population and Housing Census The Union Report The Union Report : Census Report Volume 2 Volume Report : Census The Union Report Census Report Volume 2 Department of Population Ministry of Immigration and Population May 2015 The 2014 Myanmar Population and Housing Census The Union Report Census Report Volume 2 For more information contact: Department of Population Ministry of Immigration and Population Office No. 48 Nay Pyi Taw Tel: +95 67 431 062 www.dop.gov.mm May, 2015 Figure 1: Map of Myanmar by State, Region and District Census Report Volume 2 (Union) i Foreword The 2014 Myanmar Population and Housing Census (2014 MPHC) was conducted from 29th March to 10th April 2014 on a de facto basis. The successful planning and implementation of the census activities, followed by the timely release of the provisional results in August 2014 and now the main results in May 2015, is a clear testimony of the Government’s resolve to publish all information collected from respondents in accordance with the Population and Housing Census Law No. 19 of 2013. It is my hope that the main census results will be interpreted correctly and will effectively inform the planning and decision-making processes in our quest for national development. The census structures put in place, including the Central Census Commission, Census Committees and Offices at all administrative levels and the International Technical Advisory Board (ITAB), a group of 15 experts from different countries and institutions involved in censuses and statistics internationally, provided the requisite administrative and technical inputs for the implementation of the census.
    [Show full text]
  • Militarized Conflicts in Northern Shan State
    A Return to War: Militarized Conflicts in Northern Shan State ASIA PAPER May 2018 EUROPEAN UNION A Return to War: Militarized Conflicts in Northern Shan State © Institute for Security and Development Policy V. Finnbodavägen 2, Stockholm-Nacka, Sweden www.isdp.eu “A Return to War: Militarized Conflicts in Northern Shan State” is an Asia Paper published by the published by the Institute for Security and Development Policy. The Asia Paper Series is the Occasional Paper series of the Institute’s Asia Program, and addresses topical and timely subjects. The Institute is based in Stockholm, Sweden, and cooperates closely with research centers worldwide. The Institute serves a large and diverse community of analysts, scholars, policy-watchers, business leaders, and journalists. It is at the forefront of research on issues of conflict, security, and development. Through its applied research, publications, research cooperation, public lectures, and seminars, it functions as a focal point for academic, policy, and public discussion. This publication has been produced with funding by the European Union. The content of this publication does not reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Responsibility for the information and views expressed in the paper lies entirely with the authors. No third-party textual or artistic material is included in the publication without the copyright holder’s prior consent to further dissemination by other third parties. Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. © European Union and ISDP, 2018 Printed in Lithuania ISBN: 978-91-88551-11-5 Cover photo: Patrick Brown patrickbrownphoto.com Distributed in Europe by: Institute for Security and Development Policy Västra Finnbodavägen 2, 131 30 Stockholm-Nacka, Sweden Tel.
    [Show full text]
  • Grave Diggers a Report on Mining in Burma
    GRAVE DIGGERS A REPORT ON MINING IN BURMA BY ROGER MOODY CONTENTS Abbreviations........................................................................................... 2 Map of Southeast Asia............................................................................. 3 Acknowledgments ................................................................................... 4 Author’s foreword ................................................................................... 5 Chapter One: Burma’s Mining at the Crossroads ................................... 7 Chapter Two: Summary Evaluation of Mining Companies in Burma .... 23 Chapter Three: Index of Mining Corporations ....................................... 29 Chapter Four: The Man with the Golden Arm ....................................... 43 Appendix I: The Problems with Copper.................................................. 53 Appendix II: Stripping Rubyland ............................................................. 59 Appendix III: HIV/AIDS, Heroin and Mining in Burma ........................... 61 Appendix IV: Interview with a former mining engineer ........................ 63 Appendix V: Observations from discussions with Burmese miners ....... 67 Endnotes .................................................................................................. 68 Cover: Workers at Hpakant Gem Mine, Kachin State (Photo: Burma Centrum Nederland) A Report on Mining in Burma — 1 Abbreviations ASE – Alberta Stock Exchange DGSE - Department of Geological Survey and Mineral Exploration (Burma)
    [Show full text]
  • Drug Trafficking in and out of the Golden Triangle
    Drug trafficking in and out of the Golden Triangle Pierre-Arnaud Chouvy To cite this version: Pierre-Arnaud Chouvy. Drug trafficking in and out of the Golden Triangle. An Atlas of Trafficking in Southeast Asia. The Illegal Trade in Arms, Drugs, People, Counterfeit Goods and Natural Resources in Mainland, IB Tauris, p. 1-32, 2013. hal-01050968 HAL Id: hal-01050968 https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01050968 Submitted on 25 Jul 2014 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. Atlas of Trafficking in Mainland Southeast Asia Drug trafficking in and out of the Golden Triangle Pierre-Arnaud Chouvy CNRS-Prodig (Maps 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 25, 31) The Golden Triangle is the name given to the area of mainland Southeast Asia where most of the world‟s illicit opium has originated since the early 1950s and until 1990, before Afghanistan‟s opium production surpassed that of Burma. It is located in the highlands of the fan-shaped relief of the Indochinese peninsula, where the international borders of Burma, Laos, and Thailand, run. However, if opium poppy cultivation has taken place in the border region shared by the three countries ever since the mid-nineteenth century, it has largely receded in the 1990s and is now confined to the Kachin and Shan States of northern and northeastern Burma along the borders of China, Laos, and Thailand.
    [Show full text]
  • ITRI High-Level Assessment on OECD Annex II Risks in Wa Territory In
    | High-level assessment on OECD risks in Wa territory | May 2015 ITRI High-level assessment on OECD Annex II risks in Wa territory in Myanmar May 2015 v1.0 | High-level assessment on OECD risks in Wa territory | May 2015 Synergy Global Consulting Ltd United Kingdom office: South Africa office: [email protected] Tel: +44 (0)1865 558811 Tel: +27 (0) 11 403 3077 www.synergy-global.net 1a Walton Crescent, Forum II, 4th Floor, Braampark Registered in England and Wales 3755559 Oxford OX1 2JG 33 Hoofd Street Registered in South Africa 2008/017622/07 United Kingdom Braamfontein, 2001, Johannesburg, South Africa Client: ITRI Ltd Report Title: High-level assessment on OECD Annex II risks in Wa territory in Myanmar Version: Version 1.0 Date Issued: 11 May 2015 Prepared by: Quentin Sirven Benjamin Nénot Approved by: Ed O’Keefe Front Cover: Panorama of Tachileik, Shan State, Myanmar. All rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of ITRI Ltd. The report should be reproduced only in full, with no part taken out of context without prior permission. The authors believe the information provided is accurate and reliable, but it is furnished without warranty of any kind. ITRI gives no condition, warranty or representation, express or implied, as to the conclusions and recommendations contained in the report, and potential users shall be responsible for determining the suitability of the information to their own circumstances.
    [Show full text]
  • Mong La: Business As Usual in the China-Myanmar Borderlands
    Mong La: Business as Usual in the China-Myanmar Borderlands Alessandro Rippa, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich Martin Saxer, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich The aim of this project is to lay the conceptual groundwork for a new understanding of the positionality of remote areas around the globe. It rests on the hypothesis that remoteness and connectivity are not independent features but co-constitute each other in particular ways. In the context of this project, Rippa and Saxer conducted exploratory fieldwork together in 2015 along the China-Myanmar border. This collaborative photo essay is one result of their research. They aim to convey an image of Mong La that goes beyond its usual depiction as a place of vice and unruliness, presenting it, instead, as the outcome of a particular China-inspired vision of development. Infamous Mong La It is 6:00 P.M. at the main market of Mong La, the largest town in the small autonomous strip of land on the Chinese border formally known in Myanmar as Special Region 4. A gambler from China’s northern Heilongjiang Province just woke up from a nap. “I’ve been gambling all morning,” he says, “but after a few hours it is better to stop. To rest your brain.” He will go back to the casino after dinner, as he did for the entire month he spent in Mong La. Like him, hundreds of gamblers crowd the market, where open-air restaurants offer food from all over China. A small section of the market is dedicated to Mong La’s most infamous commodity— wildlife.
    [Show full text]