By K’pru Paw 

Since the fall of Mernalplaw in 1994 after DKBA split from KNU organization, the last split of Htin Maung, the commander of No.7 brigades had tested the KNU leadership for its ability of holding the organization in unity and to get continuous support from Karen people inside and overseas.The latest faction of Bo Htin Maung and his a few followers is just a repeating the political history of the faction of Kawthoolei Revolutionary Council led by Saw Hunta Thamwe in 1963. During that split, Ne Win, the chief of Burmese armed forces exploited the conflict between left wing and right wing faction led by Mahn Ba Zan and Saw Hunta Thamwe. In this latest split the SPDC regime reused and recycle the old tactic of divide and rule between Karen armed oppositions by keep posting Bo Htin Maung as true peace maker, but Padoh Mahn Sha as a communist.The secretary of Karen National Union, Padoh Mahn Sha is being targeted by new splinter group so called KNU/KNLA peace council. The group accused Mahn Sha is no longer interested in Karen people. However, contrary to that accusation, Mahn Sha is the one who is able to maintain the unity and balance within the KNU leadership with his best ability and knowledge. Padoh Mahn Sha was born from a Pwo Karen family in Irrawaddy Delta regions. Around 1947 to early 1970s, most progressive young men in Burma fond of reading literature about Marxism and Leninism.

Burma’s national hero Gen Aung San used to believe in Communism at one point of his life. Mahn Sha was one of those young men who grew up with leftist ideological books. Later he joined to Karen National Union Party (KNUP) lead by Mahn Ba Zan.

Throughout his life he served for KNU organization with his best effort. His children grew up without proper care from the parents due to both parents served for Karen resistant full time. Because of his connection with Burma Communist Party or BCP, he was punished by Gen. Saw Bo Mya. He was sent to KNU Nyaung Lay Bin District as an ordinary foot soldier and served local KNU leaders. Mahn Sha took all kind of punishment happily and never showed his disappointment to his superiors. His loyalty to KNU organization was tested several times. Later he was called back to Mernalplaw to serve as personal advisor to Gen. Bo Mya. He is one of the rare leaders with both skills in politic and military experience. Padoh Mahn Sha was trained in gorilla warfare. He fought and was survived in Pegu Yomas military operation against KNUP and CPB strongholds by Burmese army with the name of operation Aung Soe Moe around 1974-1975.

After Burmese Army military offensive in Pegu Yoma region only just over 100 out off initial 600 Kawthoolei People’s Liberation Army soldiers survived and able to rejoined KNU under Saw Bo Mya. Padoh Mahn Sha was one of those survivors.There is only one reason why Padoh Mahn Sha is being targeted by SPDC regime is he is one the rare leader who is free from corruption with high integrity. The military generals knew about Padoh Mahn Sha since they had cease-fire meeting in Maulmein in November 1996 peace talk between KNU and SPDC army generals.

Tamalar Baw was the team leader of KNU cease-fire delegates, and the entire team never bounded down to the demand of military regime. Bo Htin Maung was trained in conventional warfare using heavy artillery to fight. He seemed to be unfamiliar to the effectiveness of guerrilla warfare without much support from the outside world. Throughout his military career, he traded all natural resources from No. 7 brigade to buy the heavy weapons and kept his fighting forces strong.After the fall of Manerplaw, KNU controlled territory was shrunken and the military supply was low. The moral was getting low among the soldiers of No. 7 brigade area. No. 7 brigade military leaders started looking for peaceful and quiet time within the controlled area instead of fighting the regime’s army.When a cease-fire proposal was offered to KNU leaders by SPDC general secretary Khin Nyunt in 2004, the one who was the happiest person was no one other than Brigadier Gen. Htain Maung. He accompanied to Gen. Bo Mya to Rangoon in 2004 by invitation of Khin Nyunt. It was Gen. Bo Mya’s first and last trip to Rangoon meeting with SPDC leaders face to face within 50 years of fighting.

When Gen Bo Mya passed away, new leaders of SPDC generals continued the same strategy of a divide and conquer started by Gen Khin Nyunt by sending peace brokers like, Dr. Sai Mon Tha, a Karen Physician and Dr. Paw Paw, a close associate of Dr. Daw Khin Win Swe, the wife of late Prime Minister Khin Nyunt.This time the peace brokers used political marketing strategies using pull and push. When Dr. Paw Paw, Dr. Rebecca and Dr. Sai Mon Tha approached KNU leaders to enter a peace plan.In the remote jungle area, Dr. Timothy and Maung Kyaw pushed Bo Htin Maung and No.7 brigade leaders by telling unsecured economic opportunities.

The strategy of showing a carrot to drive a donkey worked out this time. Gen Htin Maung started a plan to take a peace deal proposed by Col Mya Htun Oo in late 2006.He entered into the mouth of crocodile before the end of 2006.

In Karen folk lore of rabbit in the mouth of crocodile, the rabbit is very clever. She tested the tricky crocodile to reveal its true character by saying, “If you are a log float up the river and if you are a crocodile float down the river.” Then the crocodile went up the river to trick the rabbit. But the rabbit said, “If this really is a log, how can it go up the river? It must be a crocodile.”The same rabbit could manage to escape from the mouth of crocodile even she was trapped in the mouth. One day when the rabbit stopped to take a drink of water, the crocodile came from behind and snapped up the rabbit in his mouth.In seeking revenge upon the rabbit, the crocodile kept the rabbit in his mouth for a long time before swallowing her. Then the rabbit said to the crocodile from within its mouth, “If you are female say ‘Hum.’ If you are male say, ‘Ah.’” When the crocodile said “Ah,” the rabbit jumped out and was free.

Saw Hunter Tha Hmwe, the leader of Kawthoolei Revolution Council was the first rabbit in the mouth of Crocodile. Ne win personally wrote to Mahn Ba Zan and the leader of KNUP who he thought more honest describing 14 years of civil war as a disaster the country, but Mahn Ba Zan never trusted Ne Win. Only Saw Hunter Thamwe and his group laid down their arms in April, 1963 after the split between Mahn Ba Zan and the rightist Hunta Thamwe.1963/64 peace talk between Revolutionary Council led by Ne Win and combined forced of ethnic armed groups and Communist party of Burma was failed due to insincerity of Revolutionary Council.

Nai Shwe Kyin claimed that The Burmese army’s aim is to buy time and to military escalation of the war. KIO leader Zau Mai recalled, “they were very good at divide and rule as they were good students since they had learned it from the British.” Later after 2003, Nai Han Tha, the leader of New Mon State Party Cease-fire group said that they were cheated politically and economically. The SPDC regime broke all the promises that were made between Mon cease fire group and the regime by closing Mon language schools and arresting Mon political activists.

SPDC regime had shown its true character by denying transferring the power to NLD party after 1990 general elections. The regime’s army snapped up the Kachin, Shan, Palaung and Mon cease-fire groups and swallowed one after another. UWSA and DKBA armed groups will be the next targets to reduce their strength or to surrender.Foreign and government media personals were invited and showed off how much support the cease-fire groups received from the regime by showing fake materials. Later all those supporting materials were taken away without distributing any things. Nobody even knows what was inside those bags displayed at welcome ceremonies to cease fire groups.

The crocodile had already shown its blood stained teeth in De-Bae-Yin incident clearly. During May 30 Debeyin incident the SPDC crocodile revealed whether it is a log or a dangerous crocodile. That time the SPDC crocodile appeared as the members of the Union Solidarity and Development Association and snapped Daw Aung San Su Kyi and her supporters.

Bo Htin Maung used to fight for independent state for more than 40 years or most of his life time. Eventually in 2006, he was granted only one village, Htoe Kawkoo, a village where Karen national leader Saw Ba Oo Gyi and his fellow Karens were ambushed and killed by Burmese army.The facts Bo Htin Maung did not know was SPDC army generals used villagers as forced labour to clean up the place for him and his followers. Unfortunately villagers had to pay more taxes in order to accommodate newly arrived so called KNU/KNLA Peace Council.

 Burmese military commanders sought advices from best astrologers and used the name of Htoe Kawkoo village to win Karen military commander and his followers.Bo Htain Maung has no knowledge or education about the rights of indigenous Karen people. Karens are the original owners of Kawthoolei or the land of Karen State. Karens are the first people to consult with and seek permission to do any development projects that would affect the livelihood of Karen people in that region. Karen people will never stop to fight until SPDC army withdraws their occupation from entire Karen regions.

After DKBA split in 1994-1995 the first assignment for DKBA from the regime was to attack Hway Hkock refugee camp just to prove that to be alliance of the SPDC regime. It is a time for Bo Htain Maung and his followers to prove to be alliance with SPDC Regime and it is also a test for Bo Htin Maung to destroy and burn down Mae Hla refugee camp, where there are more than 20000 refugees living in crowded bamboo huts.Certainly, Htain Maung put his own live and the lives of his family members and other innocent Karen soldiers in the most dangerous and damaging situation to gain unsecured economic opportunity and a remote village for the peace deal.

Now, they are in the mouth of the crocodile, the SPDC regime. In the political history of the Karen National Union or the KNU, all CEC members had proven commitment and their loyalty for the freedom and self-determination of Karen indigenous people. A Burmese military general always portrays KNU as a group of narrow nationalists base on racism. Regardless of this accusation, the truth is surprisingly there were some none Karen ethnic among the members of Central Executive Committee like U Soe Aung, an Arakanese, and Dr. Singh, a Punjabi ethnic, who was born in Burma. Both of them were elected and rewarded base on their performing review and loyalty to the organization.

Timothy and Maung Kyaw’s attempt to divide between KNLA No.7 brigade and KNU leadership revealed their true characteristic of whether they are logs or crocodiles. Maung Kyaw, a self-appointed KNLA Communication Officer and an SPDC informer revealed his true character of a hyena under the goat skin even though he claimed himself as a license officer for KNU/KNLA peace council. Timothy is just another crocodile who has been pretending as a Karen Christian Minister, and tried to lure Htin Maung to become a prey.

It may not be difficult task for a clever rabbit to test a tricky crocodile if he was a log or a crocodile. If Maung Kyaw and Timothy or anyone who truly love to see peace and social justice in the Karen region, they would never ignore the facts or the issues of human rights violation against Karen civilians committed by Burmese Army. They also need to be aware of a lack of political system to solve current political deadlock in Burma. Karen people are the original owner of the land of Kawthoolei. No need to ask permission from SPDC regime to claim their land to use for future generation.

Two crocodiles simply ignored all the crimes committed by the regime and keep quiet like the regime’s agents always do. Karen leaders or even an ordinary citizen do not need to go a university education to learn about tricky crocodile, but just need to remember a Karen legend. Only thing we could do for now is a prayer for Bo Htin Maung and his family members and innocent Karen soldiers who were being trapped in the mouth of crocodile. Let’s pray for them.  

K’pru Paw