formation on the Self-Administered to put the city under its self-adminis- Zone, economic concerns, drug is- tered zone have been expressed. LETTERS FROM THE FIELD sues and ethnic armed group impacts. Taunggyi, the heart of the State, plays Shan State - South To begin with, and at a frst sight, an important role in various sectors. Shan South seemed to be socially har- According to some respondents, the monious. However, underlying ten- township is in appearance harmoni- 4500 questionnaires for the two re- sions seem to exist between certain ous, but deep inside, people – notably search undertaken. In addition to ethnic groups, notably between Pa-O Shan and Pa’O - do not get along well quantitative data, CDNH researchers and Shan. It is notably the case in two together. It should however be noted conducted a total of 31 interviews townships: Pinlaung and Taunggyi. that these tensions are mostly due to with individuals selected due to their In Pinlaung, Shan respondents inter- the leadership of the different groups specifc knowledge on the area. In viewed in the area shared their per- rather than the result of everyday order to capture diverse thematic and ception and how they feel inferior to life people’s hatred toward each oth- the complexity of the area, more in- Pa-O. According to interviewees, in er. To the contrary, at the grass root terviews are planned for early 2017 the past, majority of inhabitants in level, Pa-O and Shan seem to coexist before the release of the report. Pinlaung were Shan while nowadays, peacefully. Pinlaung has a large Pa’O majority, In October 2016, our team start- impacting the social structure of the The question of the Self-Adminis- ed the research in Shan South, with area. Shan reminisced their golden tered Zones also impacts the rela- the objective of surveying 15 Town- times in the past and they have sus- tion between Pa’O and Intha peo- ships. Security concerns were largely picion towards Pa-O - who beneft ple, in the surrounding of Inlay lake, affecting the research. For example, from a recent and sudden economic Nyaungshwe Township. in Mongshu Township, the Research boom. Team could not survey according to These tensions existing within the In the mark of the nationwide sur- Shan State, belonging to diverse eth- the plan defned. Indeed, the arrival The Self-Administered Zones seem different SAZ between the minori- vey dedicated to the State of Social nic and religious groups. Shan State in Mongshu on 25 Oct, 2016, ten- to be the source of the tensions ex- ty and majority groups suggest that Harmony and the Citizen Voices in is home to only a minority of Bamar sions between Myanmar authorities the advantage of ethnic Self-admin- Myanmar’s Transition, CDNH Re- ethnicity, the majority being Shan. and the SSA suddenly increased after istered Zone can be considered as search Team travelled extensively in This contradiction to the nationwide members of an ethnic armed group disadvantage for the smaller groups Shan State. Shan State is the eastern- picture (where Bamar are a major- entered the town with weapons, lead- within the SAZ. As mentioned ear- most administrative unit of Myan- ity) underscores the long history of ing to retaliation from part of local 15 lier Self-administered Zone seem to mar. Within Myanmar, Shan State armed confict that hampered the de- police offcers. Subsequently, data Townships surveyed in be one of the root causes of the eth- shares borders with Kachin State, velopment and affected the quality of collection in Mongshu Township was Shan South nic tensions. When one ethnic group Mandalay Region and Kayah State. It life of the inhabitants of the region. cancelled. gained a Self-administered Zone is the largest of the 14 administrative isting between Pa-O and Shan. On 20 of their own, the remaining eth- Due to the size of the State, part of The present letter from the feld units of Myanmar covering almost a August 2010, Pinlaung became part nic groups also longed to have their the data collection is still ongoing. highlights some frst impressions of quarter of the total country area. It is of the Pa-O Self-administered Zone own Self-administered Zones. Hav- Thus, this letter from the feld is ded- CDNH Researchers during their trip. commonly referred to as a combina- (Pa’O SAZ), where a majority of the ing several ethnic Self-administered icated to present fndings and impres- Rather than a proper research docu- tion of 3 entities: Shan North, Shan inhabitants are now Pa-O. The grant- Zones within Shan State could very sions from frst part of the trip to ment, these impressions are more to South and Shan East, encompassing a ing of SAZ status to the Pa’O have well lead to boiling point of all the Shan South. be considered as current topics that total of 14 districts and 83 townships. strong repercussion in the minds of ethnic tensions that could explode as are being dug by researchers prior to In Shan South, CDNH Research non-Pa’O residing outside the SAZ. armed clashes. Therefore, due to the According to the 2014 Census, ap- release a report on Shan South. These unique status of Self-administered proximately 5.8 million people live in Team spent approximately two In Taunggyi, fears of Pa-O attempt months and distributed more than impressions include thoughts and in- Zone (SAZ), CDNH Research Team Page - 1 intends to prepare the ground for us Pa-O Self-Administered Zone. This Shan South is diverse not only in depends on the drug trade. If the to conduct detailed research on all the powerful Ethnic Armed Organisa- ethnicity but also in religion. Differ- poppy farmers make a huge amount SAZs in Shan State. tion is not welcome by all. For exam- ent religious groups can be found in of money from poppy business, they ple, Shans have negative perspectives Shan State. According to interviews come to the town to buy goods. If Yet, at this stage, different elements on PNO as they believe that the latter conducted and observations made not, all the business in the town rarely related to SAZ can be developed. has affliation with military backed in the feld, Shan South seems to be functions. First, having a Self-administered Union Solidarity and Development relatively religiously harmonious. Yet, Zone gives a huge boost to the de- Party (USDP). relating to Muslims, Shan South is in- For locals, there are links between velopment of that region. For exam- different from the rest of the States EAOs and drug trade, as people think ple, one of the multiple reasons why The Shan State Army (SSA) is also a and Regions in the country. Distrust that one way for ethnic armed groups some Intha interviewed were strongly powerful force in the region. While towards Muslims still remains at large to make money is to trade drugs. Peo- in favour of a SAZ for their ethnic ethnic tensions exist between Pa-O in Shan South. Some respondents in- ple also consider that the existence of group is the fact that the income and Shan, PNO and SSA had al- terviewed mentioned that they kept a drug trade highlights is linked to cor- coming from tourists’ entrance fee to ready set up several steps to resolve watchful eye on the Muslims living in ruption within the local authorities. Inlay lake would be directly managed if problems were to occur. However, their communities after the racial and The local authorities destroy poppy by the Intha people, contrary to the the relationship between those ethnic religious crisis that occurred in 2012. felds every year but the drugs are current legislation. armed groups and military is fragile Though the mistrust towards Muslim produced every year and people are at best. community remains at large, CDNH tired of endlessly repeating vicious The presence of Ethnic Armed cycle. As a consequence, people lose Groups (EAOs) in Shan South is also Also of note the presence of the Researchers have been positively sur- towards Muslims when they talk- prise by the existence of youth inter- faith in authorities and have doubt on ed about religious issue, when the a point to highlight in this letter from Kayan New Land Party (KNLP). the transparency of local authorities. the feld. Former ethnic armed group, Its intention to reunite all the Kayan faith groups, notably in Taunggyi. conversation turned about econom- Pa-O National Army (PNA), which who are scattered all around in four Of note, the youth addiction to drugs ic issues, the topic which is mostly Economically, Shan South is highly brought up by the people is the infu- has now become a peoples’ militia different places and ask for Kayan reliant on agriculture. The main local has been highlighted by several par- after signing a ceasefre agreement Self-Administered Zone. One of ticipants to the survey and seems to ence of Chinese in economic sphere. products that Shan State is famous Certain respondents mentioned that with State Peace and Development those four places is Shan South. for are tea leaves and Thanaka. Yet be a particularly serious issue. Council on 11 April 1991, and its po- Thus, it will become a crucial matter Chinese were running their business the prices of these products drop Another pillar supporting the econo- with the support from the Chinese litical wing Pa-O National Organisa- which is necessary to be addressed in signifcantly, leading the farmers to a tion (PNO), currently administers the the near future. my of Shan State is tourism. The hot who are from main land China. There higher degree of fnancial uncertain- air balloon festival held in Taunggyi are some Shan respondents who ex- ty. during Ta Saung Taing Festival cap- pressed their concerns that China will To make a living, some farmers turn tures the heart of not only locals but devour Myanmar in the future as the toward poppy cultivation because of also foreigners. Inlay Lake, the sec- China’s infuence on Myanmar has the easiness to earn a consequent liv- ond most popular place in Myanmar, become bigger and bigger. ing from it. is located in Nyaungshwe, a township close to Taunggyi. In addition, Shan Reports analyzing the data collect- Drugs have become an alarming is- South is famous for its landscapes, ed and providing key elements of sue in Shan South. The vast mountain the caves of Pindaya or the different understanding on Shan State will be ranges which are diffcult to travel in treks offered between Kalaw and In- published by April 2017 and shared become a secret hideout for poppy lay Lake. with relevant stakeholders. For more farmers where they can grow poppy information and to keep posted on in secret. The importance of pop- Speaking of economy, there is an our reports, please subscribe to our py business is deeply rooted in the issue which captures our attention. CDNH Research Team Updates re- economy of Shan State. Economic If people that we encountered in [email protected] the feld expressed their concerns functionality of township like Pekon The CDNH Research Team. Page - 2