Brown, Sylvia (2012) Youths in non-military roles in an armed opposition group on the Burmese-Thai border. PhD Thesis. SOAS, University of London http://eprints.soas.ac.uk/15634 Copyright © and Moral Rights for this thesis are retained by the author and/or other copyright owners. A copy can be downloaded for personal non‐commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the copyright holder/s. The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. When referring to this thesis, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given e.g. AUTHOR (year of submission) "Full thesis title", name of the School or Department, PhD Thesis, pagination. Youths in non-military roles in an armed opposition group on the Burmese-Thai border Sylvia Brown 2012 Thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Development Studies, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London Statement of Original Work I have read and understood regulation 17.9 of the Regulations for students of the School of Oriental and African Studies concerning plagiarism. I undertake that all the material presented for examination is my own work and has not been written for me, in whole or in part, by any other person. I also undertake that any quotation or paraphrase from the published or unpublished work of another person has been duly acknowledged in the work which I present for examination. Signed: ____________________________ Date: _________________ Abstract This thesis examines how and why youths participate in non-military roles in the KNU, an armed opposition group along the Burmese-Thai border which has been in conflict with the Burmese state for over sixty years. It analyses the ways in which the group’s internal youth policies and programmes, as well as external factors influence the construction of a youth category and the particular roles youths take on in the group. It also examines how youth participation redefines youth roles and influences inter-generational relations and hierarchies. Finally, it considers how the KNU’s changing political and strategic goals affect and are in turn affected by youth activities. This thesis addresses three main questions. First, how is ‘youth’ defined and understood in the KNU and why are they so defined? Second, why do youths take on non-military roles in the KNU and what factors influence their career trajectory within the movement? Third, what is the purpose of youth non-military roles in the KNU and how are these roles shaped by the KNU’s political and strategic goals? Whilst most writing on youth and conflict is concerned with the role of youth as armed belligerents, this study focuses on their non military roles. It adopts an actor oriented approach to show the interaction between the micro-level processes influencing youth mobilisation and participation, and wider contextual factors that shape and constrain individual decision making. These include the changing nature of the conflict, processes of state formation, violent non state resistance, and evolving organisational adaptation by the KNU and its leadership, all of which frame youth political action. A fine grained analysis of youth roles and activities provides a lens to examine broader changes in the armed group’s non-military operations and strategies as it adapts to changes in external geopolitical and local conditions and seeks to replace declining black market revenues with external INGO funding. This study aims to contribute to the emerging literature on youths’ engagement in armed opposition groups and the changing operations and political strategies of armed groups from the perspective of the youth cohort. Table of Contents Abstract........................................................................................................................................... 3 Table of Contents.......................................................................................................................... 4 Figures............................................................................................................................................. 6 Tables.............................................................................................................................................. 7 Maps................................................................................................................................................ 7 Photos............................................................................................................................................. 8 Acknowledgements....................................................................................................................... 9 Map of Burma.............................................................................................................................. 11 Abbreviations............................................................................................................................... 12 Chapter 1: Introduction.............................................................................................................. 15 1 Research rationale................................................................................................................ 15 2 Research questions and definitions................................................................................... 20 3 Research design.................................................................................................................... 22 4 Thesis outline ....................................................................................................................... 23 Chapter 2: Youths in Armed Opposition Groups: Recruitment, roles and participation patterns ......................................................................................................................................... 26 1 Who is a ‘youth’? ................................................................................................................. 27 2 Patterns of youth progression through armed opposition groups............................... 32 3 Retention of recruits: Participant exit, loyalty and voice ............................................... 46 4 Youth roles in armed opposition groups......................................................................... 49 5 Conclusion............................................................................................................................ 54 Chapter 3: Youths in Armed Opposition Groups: Understanding the micro-dynamics of state-making from the periphery............................................................................................... 58 1 Peripheral conflicts and state-making in the borderlands ............................................. 60 2 The micro-dynamics of armed opposition groups and peripheral conflicts............... 69 3 Conclusion............................................................................................................................ 78 Chapter 4: Methodology............................................................................................................. 81 1 Research Design .................................................................................................................. 81 2 Ethnographic Research Method ....................................................................................... 87 3 Data collection methods and the fieldwork period........................................................ 92 4 Methodological Issues ...................................................................................................... 103 5 Conclusion.......................................................................................................................... 108 Chapter 5: Contested State-Making: Changing technologies of state-making and conflict between the KNU and the Burmese military........................................................................ 110 1 Outbreak of conflict between the KNU and the Burmese State: Self-rule and ethnocratic state-making...................................................................................................... 112 2 Changing patterns of Burmese state-making and the KNU conflict......................... 118 3 Sovereignty and control in the Karen borderlands ...................................................... 135 4 Conclusion.......................................................................................................................... 153 Chapter 6: Constructing ‘youth’ in the KNU........................................................................ 156 1 Why did the KNU create a ‘youth’ category?................................................................ 158 2 Who is a ‘Karen Youth’? Factors influencing the construction and representation of a ‘youth’ category in the KNU............................................................................................... 160 3 Effects of creating a ‘youth’ category in the KNU....................................................... 172 4 Conclusion.......................................................................................................................... 182 Chapter 7: Youth recruitment,