LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – “Titanic 3D” will sail into Myanmar on August 17, becoming one of the first major studio films to be released in the Southeast Asian country in decades, according to its producer Twentieth Century Fox.

The re-release of James Cameron’s romantic drama will hit Myanmar (also known as Burma) through an arrangement with the Mingalar Company. In a statement, Twentieth Century Fox alluded to the political reforms taking place throughout the country as part of the reason for its decision to open the film there.

“In recent years, we have entered markets such as Vietnam, Cambodia, Mongolia and Papua New Guinea,” Twentieth Century Fox International co-presidents Tomas Jegeus and Paul Hanneman said in a joint statement. “We have noted with great interest the reforms taking place in Burma under Thein Sein and look forward to visiting our newest territory when we travel Asia later this year.”

Though the country was notorious for its human rights abuses and repressive regimes, it has begun to makes its election process more democratic and has released some political prisoners. Burma was previously controlled by a military junta, but following elections in 2010, power was ceded to elected officials – though many of them still have ties to the junta.

Since its re-release last spring, “Titanic 3D” has grossed nearly $344 million worldwide, bringing the lifetime worldwide total for the film to $2.19 billion, to date.

LONDON, Aug. 13 (UPI) — The British government is seriously concerned about ongoing violence in Rakhine state in western Myanmar, the foreign secretary said Monday.

Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, earned praise for a series of political developments that started with general elections in 2010. Former prisoner and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi earned a spot on the country’s Parliament in elections this year.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague said “many fruits” were borne from the country’s political advances, though there were serious concerns about ongoing violence.

“We have urged the government to resolve the crisis by taking effective and lawful steps to prevent any further violence, in accordance with international human rights law,” he said in a statement. “We have also called upon the communities based there to act with restraint.”

The U.N. special envoy on human rights in Myanmar, Tomas Ojea Quintana, said at the end of his visit to Myanmar there was “widespread suffering” among members of the Muslim and Buddhists communities in Rakhine state.

Violence erupted along Myanmar’s coastal area in June after the alleged rape and killing of a Buddhist woman. Buddhists retaliated by attacking Muslims and the United Nations estimates at least 78 people were killed during the clashes.

KUALA LUMPUR: Two Myanmar nationals were found murdered in separate incidents in the city on Saturday night.

In the first incident at 8.15pm, the body of Pa Ram Nana, 27, was discovered in Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz.

His throat was slit.

Initial investigations showed that Pa had met his friends at a nearby cybercafe.

It is learnt he had been in an argument with some of them after they had left the cybercafe.

Pa was a United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) card holder.

He had also been wanted by the police for his involvement in a drug case.

No weapons were found at the scene.

Kuala Lumpur CID chief Datuk Ku Chin Wah confirmed the incident.

In another incident, police apprehended two Myanmar nationals who were trying to remove their friend’s body from a house in Taman Midah, Cheras.

Cheras district deputy police chief, Supt Abdul Rahim Hamzah Othman said police received a tip-off at 11.40pm from several neighbours who overheard what appeared to be a heated argument from the house.

“Two police patrol officers were deployed to the scene and when they went to check, they saw two men lifting a lifeless body,” said Abdul Rahim.

Both suspects, in their 30s and 40s, were arrested.

Police found stab wounds on the victim’s chest.

Two knives believed to have been used in the killings were seized.

YANGON, Aug 13 (Bernama) — Myanmar Vice President Sai Mauk Kham has called for all-out efforts to bring peace to the country to pave way for building strong economy and boost the country’s development, China’s Xinhua news agency reported.

Addressing the first ever meeting of the central-level peace making working committee in Nay Pyi Taw Sunday, Sai, who is the committee’s chairman, disclosed that 10 out of 11 armed groups have reached agreements at state or central level and engagement is being made with each of the group.

“Signing peace deal would not merely establish peace. Being a fragile situation, it can be reversible at any time,” he warned.

He urged the government to render assistance to the families of the peace groups for making their living in the legal framework and ensuring their social security.

“Only when they are empowered to participate in the country’s social, economic and political spheres burying the hatchets, will the eternal peace be established”, he said.

He stressed building of peace centres for social, economic and political affairs, local and foreign aid and settlement for internally displaced persons and encouragement for them to do business in the legal framework.

He also called for setting up liaison offices to maintain relations between the two sides.

The vice president stated that “the ultimate goal of the government is not to force peace groups to serve as border guard forces and the militia always but it is a temporary arrangement”, adding that it is aimed in the long run to build a single Tatmataw (armed forces), in which all can serve in accordance with the constitution to protect the sovereignty of the country.

He reiterated that the government is committed to building peace for development of socio-economy, pointing that “the over 50-year armed conflicts have wasted time and wealth of the country”.

“Myanmar, rich in natural resources and has a sizeable population, was once one of the Asia’s vibrant economies. Failure to gain peace is one of the reasons which cause Myanmar to fall into the status of the lease developed countries (LDC),” he singled out.

He emphasised the importance of peace to bring about development to the country and to bring it out of the LDC list.

Myanmar formed an 11-member central committee for peace making, headed by President U Thein Sein, and a 52-member working committee, led by Vice President Sai Mauk Kham on May 3 to effectively carry out peace negotiation tasks with ethnic armed groups in the country.

The committees laid down three steps of peace process — talks at state level, talks at central level and talks in the parliament.

The Indiana Civil Rights Commission (ICRC) announced Monday a new partnership with the Burmese Advocacy Center (BAC) in Fort Wayne.

According to a press release form the ICRC, the new partnership is aimed at enhancing service to Burmese refugees and immigrants in the Greater Fort Wayne area. The ICRC said the union will enable the BAC to work with the state to bring awareness about anti-discrimination laws and protections to the Burmese population in Fort Wayne.

“Having a connection with someone on a local level who has already established trust within the Burmese community helps to give us credibility with the local Burmese population,” said Brad Meadows, ICRC Communications Manager.

Meadows pointed out the frequently both the Burmese and the Hispanic populations have a hard time trusting in government agencies to help them. By having the Burmese be able to go to the BAC, and then be connected to the ICRC by someone they trust means they will be more likely to use the ICRC’s services.

“It also eliminates the language barrier we might have by having to bring in a translator,” Meadows said.

According to the release, this is a significant step to ensure Fort Wayne’s Burmese population understands their rights and responsibilities under civil rights law, and is similar to other such agreements being formalized by the ICRC throughout Indiana.

The organizations will work to provide members of the Burmese communities in Fort Wayne and throughout the state information on their rights and responsibilities under Indiana Civil Rights Law, collaborate on initiatives, develop public-service announcements and training materials in English and Burmese, carry out training, workshops and outreach activities and work to identify appropriate local, state and federal services and funding that can be utilized by the Burmese communities in Fort Wayne.

“We have been working with the BAC since June of last year to make this partnership possible,” Meadows said.

Meadows said currently the ICRC isn’t investigating any civil-rights cases for the Burmese population in Fort Wayne. Meadows said they first picked up on the need for a partnership with the Fort Wayne Burmese population after the sign on the door at Ricker’s City Laundry, at Calhoun Street and Rudisill in March of 2010, saying for sanitary purposes no Burmese were allowed caused a civil rights outcry.

The Indiana Civil Rights Commission describes its work as enforcing the Indiana civil-rights laws and providing education and services to the public in an effort to ensure equal opportunity for all Hoosiers and visitors to the state.

Post-sanction Myanmar is preparing for an economic resurgence as Western governments give the all-clear for re-engagement with the impoverished nation, viewed by investors as south-east Asia’s final frontier market.

Myanmar has been welcomed back into the fold after more than 50 years of isolation, stagnation and economic mismanagement under a brutal military regime following its transition to a quasi-civilian government. In recent months Western nations, including Australia, have stepped up aid commitments and moved to ease punitive sanctions against Myanmar (also called Burma) to pave the way for greater foreign investment in the impoverished country.

Australian investors have been among visiting trade and investment delegations eyeing off opportunities in the impoverished country, considered to be one of the most underdeveloped in the region despite hosting rich, untapped natural resource reserves including petroleum, timber, gemstones and precious and base minerals.

Australian economist and Myanmar expert Professor Sean Turnell says Australian expertise in areas such as agriculture is in high demand in Myanmar, which used to be known as the “rice bowl of Asia” at the height of British rule more than 50 years ago. ”Australia has a lot to offer Burma as we are a big, rich resource/agricultural-led economy while Burma is a big but poor, resource-rich agricultural economy,” Turnell said.

Unlike the European Union and the US, Australia never imposed trade or investment sanctions on Myanmar, preferring to utilise targeted sanctions such as a visa ban and restrictions on financial services, against certain individuals and companies with close links to the former military regime. Foreign Minister Bob Carr recently signalled to lift all remaining sanctions during his visit to Myanmar in June, pledging support for President Thein Sein’s reformist government and effectively firing the starting gun for Australian investors to join the hordes of foreign firms seeking to re-engage with Myanmar.

Tim Harcourt, former chief economist at Austrade, says Australian investors have much to offer.

“Australia could help Burma develop its rural industries as well as in education and training in tourism in much the same way as in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia,” said Harcourt, who is part of the Australian School of Business at the University of NSW. ”The emphasis will be in capacity building and helping Burmese people to reach their full potential. But it would be a ‘softly, softly’ approach provided the pro-democracy reforms continue.”

Potential investors from Australia’s mining industry say Myanmar could benefit from Australian industry expertise and know how to unlock its vast mineral wealth.

“Australian junior exploration and mining companies are well-placed to enter Myanmar. Australian entrepreneurial junior companies are often the first movers going into remote areas,” said Everett, chairman of exploration company Global Resources Corporation Limited, pointing to the examples of South America, Africa and parts of Asia.

Turnell says Australia could step up its presence as a regional superpower and alternative to Chinese investment. Australia is already making a name for itself among the hordes of foreign products and people seeking their fortune in Myanmar, he says.

In the upscale bars and restaurants around the economic capital of Yangon (also called Rangoon) the familiar Australian twang can be heard discussing project opportunities from agriculture and farming to mining and petroleum. Australian produce can be discovered when wandering the aisles of Yangon’s few Western-style supermarkets by way of a bottle or two of Hardy’s shiraz to wash down the Australian camembert. The iconic Strand Hotel on Yangon’s waterfront, popular among the expats for its lively Friday happy hour, also serves up a well-bloodied chunk of Australian beef or lamb on request.

However, current-day Myanmar is far from being an easy place to do business and although the country’s tentative steps towards democracy and economic stability have been warmly welcomed by the international community, experts say it’s far from a “gold rush” of investment.“For the first time in a long time, investors see a government here that is serious about opening the country and creating a place where people can do business,” said Jared Bissinger, a PhD candidate at Macquarie University who is studying Myanmar’s economy. ”I think these are the most important reasons why there is so much excitement about Myanmar right now.”

But he says Myanmar may soon suffer from “investor fatigue”, as firms come to terms with the difficulty of doing business in a country emerging from 50 years of central economic planning. “Infrastructure?—?especially roads, telecommunications, and electricity?—?are desperately inadequate and among the worst in Asia,” he said.

“These things cannot change overnight?—?developing the capacity of the government and the country’s human and physical capital will take decades. Of course, business will play a huge role in this, but they have to understand that investment environment can only improve gradually?—?not overnight.”

Other legal and physical barriers to investment such as a weak banking sector, resulting in a cash-dependent society and untested judicial system in a country Transparency International ranks as one of the world’s most corrupt. New investors will also need to navigate layers of bureaucratic red tape, as discovered by several Australian mining firms scoping out opportunities in the country’s unexploited minerals sector at a convention in Yangon last month.

Although investors at the Myanmar Mining Summit agreed Myanmar’s rich mineral wealth holds untapped potential, the biggest bones of contention include an inhibiting Production Sharing Contract (PSC) arrangement between a foreign company and the Myanmar government, which does not act as an equity partner, but takes a hefty 30% chunk of the total resource extracted on top of royalties and income tax.

“That means you risk all the money, you risk all the development then you give the government a share of the production free of charge, on top of royalty,” said Everett, who attended the conference to look for coal mining opportunities on behalf of some Australian investors. ”People will not invest on that basis?—?not on a large scale, anyway.”

Mining veteran Owen Hegarty, formerly of Rio Tinto and Oxiana, spoke at the summit and said his firm, Tigers Realm Group, is already scoping out potential copper and gold deposits.”Tigers is taking a preliminary look at opportunities in Myanmar?—?we know the region well, we’ve had a look at some properties and prospects previously and we think the prospectivity for copper and gold is attractive and we believe it is un- and under-explored,” Hegarty said.

However, the country’s strict regulatory framework will hold back more significant investment, he said, with many firms preferring to either “watch and wait” before making their move on Myanmar.

Burma’s Vice-President Dr Sai Mauk Kham, who acts as Chairman of Union-level Peace-making Working Committee, spoke to meeting (1/2012) of the committee on Sunday at Thabin Hall of the Presidential Palace in Naypyitaw, The New Light of Myanmar newspaper said today.

Participants in the meeting were Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services Commander- in-Chief (Army) General Soe Win, Union ministers, Region and State chief ministers, commanders, the deputy minister for Border Affairs, the deputy attorney-general, national races Parliament Representatives from Lower and Upper Houses and the director-general of Union government office, the newspaper said.

Vice-President said in his speech that the meeting is the first event of the committee. The meeting intended to clarify development of peace procedures being taken by the government, to bring together all stakeholders in peace making process in regions where initial peace deals have been reached, and to get suggestions for creating peace in regions where peace is yet to be set up

On 3 May 2012, the 11-member ‘Union-level Peace-making Central Committee’ was shaped with the President as the chairman by the Order No (11/2012) of the President Office. The 52-member working committee was formed on the same day including Dr Sai Mauk Kham as the chairman. It is responsible for submitting report to the central committee after accomplishing duties.

Vice-President Dr Sai Mauk Kham, General Soe Win and Union-level Peace-making Working Committee during meeting (1/2012) of the committee on 12 August 2012, at Thabin Hall of the Presidential Palace in Naypyitaw (Photo:President Office Website)

According to, the Vice-President, there are three steps in peace-making process. They are discussion at the State level, discussion at the Union level and discussion at the Union Parliament.

The State level discussions involve ceasefire, residing only in the special areas; weapons are not allowed beyond the special areas, open liaison-offices and arranging dates and venues for Union level discussions, he clarified.

He continued his clarification about the Union level discussion. It includes living forever in the Union of Myanmar (Burma), accepting Three Main National Causes, lawful business activities, participation in anti-narcotics drives, participation in politics by establishing political parties, accepting the constitution and can amend it in the Parliament and transformation of armed groups into one army.

The third stage discussion will take place at the Union Parliament, where all national races have to sign the eternal peace deal, he said. On 18 August 2011, President Thein Sein offered the olive branch to all armed groups with Notification No (1/2011) to 11 armed groups.

He said that accords have been reached with 10 out of 11 groups at the State level or the Union level. He also said that signing peace deals would not merely establish peace. Being a fragile situation, it can be reversible at any time, he made a remark.

According to Vice-President Dr Sai Mauk Kham, President Thein Sein has clearly given guidance to his soldiers not to take any offensive and even not to shoot except in self-defense. To keep up the dealings between the two parties, liaison offices will be established to address the troubles, he said.

“The government is paying tribute to peace, because it wants the socioeconomic development of the country. The over 50- year armed conflicts have wasted time and wealth of the country. Failure to reach peace is one of the reasons which cause the nation to plunge into the status of the least developed countries,” he said,

In his conclusion remarks, Vice-President Dr Sai Mauk Kham said the government has been striving to gain peace as an important issue in order to support the country out of the LDC list.

In fact, Burma has been at civil war since independence was declared in 1948. The expenditure of the civil war turned the nation into one of the world’s most impoverished nations. Burma’s admittance to Least Developed Country status by the UN-OHRLLS in 1987 brought to light its economic bankruptcy.

The cost of hindrance ending civil-war will spoil thousands of innocent lives, a great number of economic opportunities and a chance to take a leading role in ASEAN. If the government has a proper political reform map, it should first declare a one-sided break in fighting to show goodwill towards war victims and innocent civilians.

Coincidently, on the same day, The Karen National Union (KNU) marked its 62nd anniversary of Martyrs’ Day. President of the KNU Saw Tamla Baw delivered a speech to fellow KNU leaders, members and the wider ethnic Karen community on Sunday, August 12th, according to the Karen News (KIC).

In his speech, President of the KNU said that Pressident Thein Sein’s government was indeed carrying out positive reforms. However, there are much more to be done to achieve lifelong peace.

“It is my analysis that the government, in practice, is conducting dialogue with emphasis only on business matters, rather than dialogue for peace with political essence. The other fear is that, in addition to the very weak participation of the government armed forces in the peace building process of the government, the acts of Tatmadaw (Army), in some cases, are a hindrance and danger to the peace building process,” Saw Tamla Baw said.

One of the complicated troubles in Burma is the armed forces’ failure to recognize ceasefire with ethnic armed groups. The ceasefire accords that were made by the government have been ignored by the Burma Army. It is not clear whether the military is defying its government or the government itself is saying one thing and doing another.

Speaking Freely is an Asia Times Online feature that allows guest writers to have their say. Please click here if you are interested in contributing.

A war between ethnic insurgents and government troops in Myanmar’s Kachin State has seen dozens of deaths and displacement of over 70,000 residents over the last year, with no sign of resolution.

“There have been at least 1,640 incidents of fighting, and each one of them has involved causalities,” said La Nan, the spokesperson for the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), which has resists Burmese troops in the predominantly Christian state in southern Myanmar.

Government troops are now targeting even farmers and villagers, accusing them of supporting Kachin rebels and planting bombs, said La Nan.

A KIO source in Laiza, the headquarters of the KIO on Sino-Myanmar border, said that the government had plans to overrun their stronghold. The army has reinforced their troops with military supplies, including artillery and mortar launchers, in Kachin State’s Bhamo city and in northern Shan State’s Muse Township.

The KIO – now with an estimated 15,000 militia – signed a ceasefire agreement with the government in 1994, but the latter broke down on June 19 last year when the government launched attacks on the KIO’s military wing, the Kachin Independence Army (KIA).

Many believe the 1994 truce was insignificant, as the KIO’s calls for autonomy and fundamental rights were not addressed during the ceasefire period.

After the ceasefire, the KIO was offered business opportunities in logging, jade mining and other trades. However, these offers were seen by the KIO as an attempt by Burmese cronies and officials, Chinese businessmen and even some KIA officers to exploit Kachin State’s rich forest and natural resources.

Some well-respected and educated Kachin leaders thought the ex-Myanmar military government was sincere in bringing about a political solution to the conflict. With that hope, KIO representatives joined the National Convention, which is part of the “Seven-step roadmap” written by former Prime Minister Khin Nyunt, the erstwhile junta’s chief spy.

Dr Tu Ja, a Kachin politician and a former KIO leader, took part in government meetings as well as the writing of the draft of the 2008 constitution. In 2009, he and some of his colleagues resigned from the KIO to form the Kachin State Progress Party to contest the 2010 general election.

However, tensions mounted in 2010 after the government asked all ethnic rebels to serve as part of a “Border Guard Force” under the command of the Myanmar armed forces. The KIO did not accede to the demand.

Dr Tu Ja’s party was disqualified by the Election Commission. When he tried to contest the election as an independent candidate, his candidature was rejected. Further, the government canceled three constituencies in Kachin State before the April 2012 by-election citing security reasons, and he again lost a chance to contest.

It’s understandable why KIO leaders are taking time to reach another agreement with the new government. “We will be very careful to sign any agreement this time,” La Nan said.

Having learnt the hard way about the government’s insincerity for 18 years, the KIO now seems to be focusing on the political solution, and not just the ceasefire. In early July, Kachin leaders rejected the government’s offer to hold peace talks in Bhamo Township.

La Nan said the fighting was escalating in the meantime. On July 6-7, troops shelled the KIA’s military bases, about 13 kilometers from the KIO’s headquarters. “It is nearly one year President Thein Sein ordered the army to stop attacking us, but it is being ignored by the troops,” he added.

La Nan also said the government doesn’t recognize ethnic armed resistance as a political issue. “They only see us as insurgent groups that cause instability. They think if we don’t carry guns, there will be no conflict.” But civil wars in Myanmar began because of broken political promises. “This needs to be solved by political means.”

Ethnic minorities have been fighting for independence or autonomy since after Myanmar gained independence from British colonialists in 1948. After being promised self-determination, autonomy and even separate states, ethnic Kachin, Chin and Shan leaders signed the Panglong Agreement with the Union government in 1947. However, the promise was never kept.

“We took up arms and fought simply because we lost our rights and equality,” La Nan said.

The ceasefire program with the ethnic rebels that the previous regime started in the late 1980s is just to halt the hostilities, and not to bring about permanent peace.

In his analysis in last month’s The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus, Myanmar expert and author Bertil Lintner wrote that the outbreak of hostilities in Kachin State shows that ceasefires only freeze underlying problems without providing lasting solutions. There are still at least 50,000 armed men and women in ethnic resistances, he noted.

International pressure will not be on the new government, but on ethnic rebels to cooperate with the government in the new existing political structures, Lintner wrote.

The international community is involved. At a meeting with President Thein Sein in Naypyidaw in June, the Peace Donor Support Group (PDSG) – representing the governments of Norway, the UK and Australia, as well as the European Union, the United Nations and the World Bank – offered nearly $500 million to support peace-building and other projects.

The Norwegian government also independently funds $5 million towards the peace process in eastern Myanmar, including needs assessments aimed at resettling refugees – part of a project conducted by its Norwegian Initiative.

Efforts by international non-governmental organizations (INGOs) are a good start, La Nan said. “But this alone is not enough,” he added. “NGOs and INGOs should seek to eradicate the root of the problem.”

Speaking Freely is an Asia Times Online feature that allows guest writers to have their say. Please click here if you are interested in contributing. Articles submitted for this section allow our readers to express their opinions and do not necessarily meet the same editorial standards of Asia Times Online’s regular contributors.

Saw Yan Naing is a senior reporter at Chiang Mai-based The Irrawaddy Magazine. He can be reached at yannaing@irrawaddy.org

By Michael Mackey | August 13, 2012

Thai AirAsia (FD) will increase services to Myanmar, a fast-emerging destination.

The LCC will launch 4X-weekly Airbus A320 services to Mandalay from Bangkok (BKK), Oct. 4, FD CEO Tassapon Bijleveld said. It will also increase daily services to Yangon.

FD also plans to increase its BKK-Yangon flights from 2X- to 3X-daily.

The new flights “will support both tourists and business people. We hope it will enhance both Thailand and Myanmar’s economic growth,” he said. ****************************************************

Myanmar has decided to set aside adequate quantities of natural gas for domestic consumption, despite country’s potential to export the energy source.

Reports in local media suggest that gas for domestic use from M-3 Block will not be available until 2016-2017, and it is estimated that the block will be able to produce 100 million cubic feet of gas per day. Myanmar and PTTEP have jointly explored M-3 Block off Mottama coast in March last year.

As domestic consumption is estimated to be 100 million cubic feet daily, the block will be able to produce enough gas for Myanmar.

The government has also secured agreements to set aside gas for Rakhine state from the Myanmar-China gas pipeline, which sells gas from the Shwe Gas Block off Rakhine coast to China.

It is also learnt that some of the gas from the Zawtika Gas Project will be available for domestic use.

Maj Zau Seng of the armed wing of the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) knows firsthand that territory controlled by his group still holds the remains of US military personnel who died in northern Burma during the Second World War.

Over tea at his office in the KIO-controlled enclave of Mai Ja Yang, Zau Seng, a local commander for the area, proudly displays the US military identification tag for a Cleveland Hargrove. The tag numbered 342711 T44 0 was discovered in 2006 by local villagers at a World War II-era crash site in a remote mountainous section of western Kachin State near the border with India, an area semi-controlled by the KIO.

The villagers had dug up the partially submerged plane not for the sake of historical preservation but to harvest valuable scrap metal. According to Zau Seng, many World War II crash sites in Kachin State have met similar fates at the hands of impoverished scavengers, but he believes there are many more in remote mountainous areas that have yet to be uncovered.

Hargrove, who presumably died in the crash, appears to be one of the estimated 700 US airmen who perished in northern Burma between 1943 and 1945. It was during this time that the area currently known as Kachin and neighboring Shan states became a key battleground due to the region’s strategic proximity to China because the Allies needed to reopen what became known as the Burma road, a key route for sending supplies to the anti-Japanese resistance in China.

After Myitkyina was liberated in August 1944, the previously sleepy town became the site of what at the time was one of the busiest runways in the world. Kachin State’s mountainous terrain combined with heavy rains and the primitive flying equipment of the era resulted in many US aircraft crashing without any enemy intervention.

In the years that followed the KIO’s 1994 ceasefire with Burma’s central government, efforts were made at forming a joint mission between the Burmese government, the KIO and US authorities to locate and identify the remains of US personnel missing in action. The KIO’s participation in this program abruptly ended after Burmese military authorities changed their minds about allowing the KIO to work with the American officials, according to Zau Seng.

“The KIO has always been open to helping America find the remains of their war dead. It’s the Burmese government that didn’t want this to happen,” said Zau Seng, who was previously stationed in the remote part of Western Kachin State where Hargrove’s ID tag was found.

According to The New York Times, the recent thaw in Burmese-US relations could lead to a renewed effort to recover the remains of US serviceman. Times correspondent Jane Perlez reported that Robert Newberry, a deputy assistant secretary with the Department of Defense, visited Burma in February to begin discussions with his Burmese counterparts to enable US military officials and forensic experts to search potential crash sites and exhume the remains of US airmen.

Despite the apparent new willingness on the part of the Burmese government to cooperate in this area, it remains unclear if there will be any such joint recovery missions in Kachin State as long as the conflict between the KIO and the Burmese military continues.

Zau Seng says he’d like Hargrove’s family reunited with the tag and his remains if they can be found. “This tag is an important piece of Kachin history that connects us to the important World War II friendship made between the Kachin and American people,” he said.

Although the KIO did not begin its armed insurrection against Burma’s government until 1961, more than 16 years after the end of World War II, a good portion of the founding leadership of the KIO, including the group’s first head Zau Seng (no relation to the aforementioned major), were veterans of the Second World War who were trained in guerrilla fighting as part of Detachment 101 operated by the US Office of Strategic Services (OSS), a predecessor of the CIA, or under a similar group organized by Britain’s Special Operations Executive (SOE) called the Kachin levies.

Last October, in a speech made on the Senate floor about the Burmese army’s continued Kachin offensive, Republican Senator Mitch McConnell invoked the role that the Kachin people played in the Allied war effort to drive the Japanese out of Burma. According to McConnell, “the Kachin people deserve particular mention for the commitment, sacrifice and invaluable support they provided Allied forces to reclaim that country [Burma].”

Figures cited by US military historians report that the OSS trained more than 10,000 Kachin guerrillas during the war. With US assistance, the Kachin Rangers from Detachment 101 rescued 425 downed Allied airmen and killed or captured more than 15,000 enemy soldiers, according to US records. The Kachin fighters also spent a considerable amount of effort sabotaging Japanese supply lines and destroying key infrastructure vital to the Japanese army’s grip on Burma—tactics reminiscent of the KIO’s ongoing struggle with the Burmese military today.

It was also during this period that the Naw Seng, the KIO’s early left-wing rival for the leadership of the Kachin struggle, became a famed commander. The guerrilla training Naw Seng undertook during the war undoubtedly came in handy just after Burma’s independence, when Naw Seng led a mutiny among the Burmese military in the north of the country in solidarity with the Karen insurrection taking place in the Irrawaddy Delta.

Prior to the outbreak of World War II, the Kachin, along with the Karen and Chin ethnic groups, comprised the overwhelming majority of local troops who served in Britain’s Burmese colonial army, a force that also consisted of Gurkha from Nepal and Punjabi troops from India. The Kachin and the other groups were all considered trusted “martial races” by the colonial authorities. In contrast, Burma’s colonial army had few if any members of the Burman majority, a deliberate policy of divide and rule whose legacy is still felt in the country today.

A squad of Kachin troops under British command also played a small role during the First World War serving in British-occupied Mesopotamia, now known as Iraq.

Karen leaders have warned of renewed war in Burma’s border regions unless the government begins to pursue politically meaningful negotiations with ethnic groups, during their 62th annual Martyrs’ Day celebrations in Kawthoolei on Sunday.

Marking their first open Martyrs’ Day at their rebel headquarters near the Thai border, the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA) insisted that durable peace remains a distant prospect for the conflict-torn region.

“On the political level, there is no Karen state in the constitution,” Chairperson of the DKBA’s political wing, the Klohtoobaw Karen Organization (KKO), Mahn Robert Bazan told DVB in an interview. “Not only Karen, all ethnics need a unitary state. So the future is not good. We want genuine peace. Unless they solve the national problems, there will be war here.”

DKBA leader General Saw Ler Pwe (also known as Na Ka Mwe) told DVB that the government must take concrete steps to address ethnic grievances, including equality and self-determination, or discussions will stall.

“The DKBA will not agree to a peace deal until we believe that it is genuine,” he said. “We need to wait and see.”

Addressing a packed crowd of soldiers and villagers, a KKO representative read out a statement by Karen National Union (KNU) President Saw Tamla Baw slating the government’s peace efforts, in a symbolic display of solidarity with the fellow rebel group.

“The government is engaged only in superficial and apparent activities of peace building with emphasis only on business matters, and without any political essence,” said Saw Tamla Baw. “There is no dispute that the peace aspired to by the Karen people and the one the government in power wants to give are as different as heaven and earth.”

Both the DKBA and KNU have signed tentative ceasefire agreements with the government in the past year, but relations remain volatile as clashes between rebel and government forces continue. The exploitation of the state’s vast natural resources and the controversial 2008 constitution are key sticking points.

The KNU also issued a call for ethnic unity to mark the death of their first national leader Saw Ba U Gyi, as part of ongoing efforts to reconcile the two rebel factions.

“I would like to urge the entire Karen people to work together with the KNU, so that there can be no mistake in every phase of the political dialogue,” said President Saw Tamla Baw.

It follows a deal signed in March, where the two groups agreed to coordinate with each other before negotiating with the government.

The DKBA split from the Christian-led KNU over religious divisions in 1994 to join forces with the military regime, but a faction led by General Saw Ler Pwe took up arms against the government again in 2010 after refusing to transform into a Naypyidaw-controlled Border Guard Force. The DKBA has since sought to repair its relationship with the KNU, including changing its name from “Buddhist” to “benevolent” army to downplay religious differences.

“The next step of the process will be to cooperate with the KNU by building up trust and honesty,” said Saw Ler Pwe. “This conflict is not about religion, it is about equality.”

While refugees have been returning to the areas surrounding Kawthoolei, which were razed by Burmese troops in 2010, many Karen are skeptical that the ceasefire will last.

“I think they are playing a game with us,” said 41-year Nawah, who works on the Thai border. “They won’t give Karen people a true peace deal.”

The KNU is set to hold their next round of negotiations with the government at the end of this month, but it is unlikely to deliver substantial progress.

“We will not have political talks at this meeting. We will just talk about a code of conduct to regulate their troops,” Vice-Chairman David Tharkabaw told the Irrawaddy last week. “They should stop activities, especially rights abuses. If they violate the code of conduct, we will withdraw our ceasefire agreement.”

The DKBA is yet to set a date for their next round of talks with the government.