Karenni National People's Liberation Front

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Karenni National People's Liberation Front
ကရင်နီပြည်လူမျိုးပေါင်းစုံပြည်သူ့လွတ်မြောက်ရေးတပ်ဦး
LeadersU Tun Kyaw [1]
Dates of operation1978 (1978)–2009 (2009), 2023–present (2023–present)
HeadquartersPankan village, Loikaw Township [2]
Active regions Kayah State
Myanmar-Thailand border
Ideology Marxism-Leninism [3]
Karenni nationalism
Federalism
Size2,000 [4]
AlliesState allies:

Non-state allies:
4K Coalition: [5] [6]

Other allies:

OpponentsState opponents:

Non-state opponents:

Battles and wars Internal conflict in Myanmar
Preceded by
Flag of the Karenni Army.png Karenni Army

The Karenni National People's Liberation Front (KNPLF) is a communist and Karenni nationalist insurgent group active in Kayah State, Myanmar (Burma). It agreed to become a government-sponsored border guard force on 8 November 2009 although it remains active under the name of KNPLF. [9] Starting from 13 June 2023, it has decided to change sides to the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), Karenni Army (KA), Karenni Nationalities Defense Force (KNDF), and People's Defense Force (PDF) and fight the military regime.

Contents

History

The KNPLF was formed in 1978, when a group of left-wing fighters split from the Karenni Army due to ideological differences. The group maintained close ties with the Communist Party of Burma (CPB), receiving training, supplies, and armed support from the group until the latter's disarmament in 1989. [9]

In 1989, a ceasefire deal was negotiated between the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) and the KNPLF, which was finalised in 1994. [9] The group had since helped government soldiers combat other armed insurgent groups, most notably the Karenni Army, and on 8 November 2009, the group agreed to transform into a "border guard force". [10]

The KNPLF has been accused of using child soldiers and landmines in the past, [11] with one child soldier named Koo Reh at age 13 saying:

I was watching the film [in the cinema], and he [the recruiter] sat and talked to me. He said if I joined I would be happy and receive a salary and uniform. I do not remember his name but he was from KNPLF. I agreed to join. He spoke to many people in the cinema, one by one, 20 or 25 people, adults, women, boys. About six people went with him. The older ones were 16 or 17, the younger ones 11, 12 or 13. I went home but didn't tell my mother, then I went with him. [12]

Recent events

Four KNPLF / BGF soldiers were murdered alongside at least 45 civilians during the Mo So massacre committed by the Burmese military on the Christmas Eve of 2021. KNPLF / BGF personnel tried to negotiate with soldiers from the Burmese army to stop them from burning civilians alive but were instead murdered by being shot in their heads. [13] [14] [15]

KNPLF has also received weapons from the powerful United Wa State Army (UWSA) post-military coup and allegedly been involved in resistance efforts against the Burmese military despite being reformed as a Border Guard Force. [16] Chit Tun, a high ranking member of KNPLF was appointed as one of the two Deputy Ministers of Federal Union Affairs in the National Unity Government (NUG), a parallel government formed by elected lawmakers and members of parliament ousted in the coup d'état. KNPLF announced its support for NUG and some low ranking KNPLF members fought alongside Karenni Nationalities Defence Force against the Burmese military. [17] [18]

In June 2023, KNPLF openly defected to anti-junta forces and joined forces with Karenni Army, Karenni Nationalities Defence Force, Karen National Liberation Army, and People's Defence Force and began attacking Burmese military positions. [19] The combined resistance forces seized junta outposts and took over Maese township in Eastern Kayah State. [20]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kayah State</span> State of Myanmar

Kayah State, or Karenni State, is a state of Myanmar. Situated in eastern Myanmar, it is bounded on the north by Shan State, on the east by Thailand's Mae Hong Son Province, and on the south and west by Kayin State. It lies approximately between 18° 30′ and 19° 55′ north latitude and between 96° 50′ and 97° 50′ east longitude. The area is 11,670 km2 (4,510 sq mi). Its capital is Loikaw. The estimated population in the 2014 Myanmar Census was 286,738, the smallest among Myanmar's seven states. It is inhabited primarily by the Karenni ethnic group, also known as Red Karen or Kayah, a Sino-Tibetan people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loikaw</span> Town in Kayah State, Myanmar

Loikaw is the capital of Kayah State, also known as Karenni State, in Myanmar. It is located in the Karen Hills area, near the State's northern tip, just above an embayment on the Pilu River. The inhabitants are mostly Kayah (Karenni). Myanmar's largest hydropower plant is located about 20 km (12 mi) east of Loikaw at Lawpita Falls.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Myanmar conflict</span> Ongoing insurgencies in Myanmar

Insurgencies have been ongoing in Myanmar since 1948, the year the country, then known as Burma, gained independence from the United Kingdom. The conflict has largely been ethnic-based, with several ethnic armed groups fighting Myanmar's armed forces, the Tatmadaw, for self-determination. Despite numerous ceasefires and the creation of autonomous self-administered zones in 2008, many armed groups continue to call for independence, increased autonomy, or the federalisation of the country. The conflict is the world's longest ongoing civil war, having spanned more than seven decades.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karenni Army</span> Burmese guerilla organization

The Karenni Army is the armed wing of the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP), and operates in eastern Kayah State, Myanmar (Burma).

The Kayan National Party is a political party in Myanmar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Unity Government of Myanmar</span> Government in exile formed in 2021

The National Unity Government of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar is a Myanmar government in exile formed by the Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH), a group of elected lawmakers and members of parliament ousted in the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état. The European Parliament has recognized the NUG as the legitimate government of Myanmar. It includes representatives of the National League for Democracy, ethnic minority insurgent groups, and various minor parties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">People's Defence Force (Myanmar)</span> Armed wing of the National Unity Government of Myanmar

The People's Defence Force is the armed wing of the National Unity Government (NUG) in Myanmar. The armed wing was formed by the NUG from youths and pro-democracy activists on 5 May 2021 in response to the coup d'état that occurred on 1 February 2021 that put the military junta and their armed wing the Tatmadaw in power. The military junta designated it as a terrorist organisation on 8 May 2021. In October 2021, NUG's Ministry of Defence announced that it had formed a central committee to coordinate military operations across the country.

The Mo So Massacre, also known as the Christmas Eve Massacre, was a mass killing of civilians that occurred on the afternoon of December 24, 2021, in Hpruso Township in Kayah State, Myanmar. During the massacre, Myanmar Army troops killed and burned over forty people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Myanmar civil war (2021–present)</span> Ongoing armed conflict in Myanmar since the 2021 coup detat

The Myanmar civil war, also called the Myanmar Spring Revolution and the People's Defensive War, is an ongoing civil war following Myanmar's long-running insurgencies, which escalated significantly in response to the 2021 military coup d'état and the subsequent violent crackdown on anti-coup protests.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karenni Nationalities Defence Force</span> Armed resistance group in Myanmar


The Karenni Nationalities Defence Force is an armed insurgent group in Myanmar formed in response to the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état. The group contains the PDFs formed by the National Unity Government. The KNDF also includes other organizations, such as the KNPP, which an official regard as "good relations between the EAOs and the public" The KNDF has engaged in fighting with the junta, mainly with the 66th Light Infantry Division.

Events in the year 2022 in Myanmar.

The following is a timeline of major events during the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), following the 2021 military coup d'état and protests. It was also a renewed intensity in existing internal conflict in Myanmar.

This is the list of important events happened in Myanmar in 2023.

The Pinlaung massacre was a mass killing of civilians by Burmese military forces on 11 March 2023, in the village of Namneng, Shan State. During the massacre, Myanmar Army troops killed at least 30 civilians, including 3 Buddhist monks. The massacre occurred 9 days after the Tar Taing massacre in Sagaing.

The 2021 Battle of Loikaw was an engagement between the Tatmadaw against ethnic Karenni militias and local PDF civilian guerrillas. The battle began on 21 May 2021, and was one of the first engagements of the current Myanmar Civil War in Kayah State.

The 2022 Battle of Loikaw was a battle for the city of Loikaw, in Myanmar's Kayah State, between January and July 2022. The State Administration Council's Tatmadaw forces attacked the city at the beginning of 2022, which was being held by the Karenni Nationalities Defence Force and local People's Defence Force groups. The fighting caused over 90,000 people in Loikaw Township to flee.

The Battle of Mese took place during the first half of 2023 for control of Mese Township on the border between Myanmar and Thailand in Kayah State. The battle was a part of the current Myanmar civil war.

Operation 1107 is an ongoing joint military operation launched on 7 November 2023, by the Karenni National People's Liberation Front, Karenni Army, and Karenni Nationalities Defence Force against the Tatmadaw military junta in Myanmar, during the Myanmar civil war. It was launched in support of the concurrent Operation 1027 by other rebel forces in Myanmar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation 1111</span> 2023 rebel military operation in Myanmar

Operation 1111 is an ongoing military operation launched by Karenni Ethnic Armed Organisations (EAOs) including the Karenni Army (KA), Karenni Nationalities Defence Force (KNDF) and Karenni National People's Liberation Front (KNPLF). The operation was launched concurrently with Operation 1107, with the goal to capture Kayah State's capital city of Loikaw.

References

  1. ↑ "KNPLF Says No Fake Peace". BNI. 6 March 2020. Retrieved 29 June 2023.
  2. ↑ "KNPLF celebrates 25 years of ceasefire in Loikaw". Ministry Of Information. Myanmar Ministry of Information. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
  3. ↑ Beng, Ooi Kee (2014). ISEAS Perspective: Selections 2012–2013. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. p. 107. ISBN   978-981-4519-26-7. Archived from the original on 11 September 2022. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
  4. ↑ Khin, Aung; Aung, Nyan Lin (9 December 2021). "ကရင်နီကာကွယ်ရေးတပ်ဖွဲ့". Voice of America (in Burmese). Archived from the original on 7 July 2022. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  5. ↑ "Intense clash in Mese, Karenni State". Democratic Voice of Burma (in Burmese). 20 June 2023.
  6. ↑ "The 4K, the clash in Mese, and the military movement of Karenni State". People's Spring (in Burmese). 20 June 2023.
  7. ↑ Davis, Anthony (22 February 2022). "Wa an early winner of Myanmar's post-coup war". Asia Times . Archived from the original on 7 October 2022. Retrieved 24 September 2022.
  8. ↑ J, Esther (10 November 2023). "After attacking military target in Karenni State, KNDF and KNPLF announce launch of 'Operation 1107'". Myanmar Now. Archived from the original on 10 November 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  9. 1 2 3 "Karenni National People's Liberation Front". Archived from the original on 10 May 2017. Retrieved 27 February 2016.
  10. ↑ Murray, Lucy; Byardu, Beh Reh (25 March 2005). "Karenni rebels dig in for last stand". Asia Times. Archived from the original on 26 March 2005. Retrieved 29 November 2018.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  11. ↑ "Geneva Call – Karenni National Peoples Liberation Front (KNPLF)". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 27 February 2016.
  12. ↑ "Sold to be Soldiers: The Recruitment and Use of Child Soldiers in Burma: VI. Child Soldiers in Non-State Armed Groups". www.hrw.org. Human Rights Watch. Archived from the original on 10 May 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
  13. ↑ J, Esther (25 December 2021). "ဖရူဆိုတွင် အစုအပြုံလိုက် မီးရှို့ခံထားရသည့်ထဲတွင် ကလေးငယ်ပင်ပါဝင်". Myanmar Now (in Burmese). Archived from the original on 3 July 2022. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  14. ↑ J, Esther (7 January 2022). "စစ်ကောင်စီ ဖုံးသမျှပေါ်နေသည့် ယာဉ်နှင့်လူများ မီးပုံရှို့မှု". Myanmar Now (in Burmese). Archived from the original on 3 July 2022. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  15. ↑ Phoe Khwar, Saw (1 March 2022). "မိုဆိုရွာ သတ်ဖြတ်မှု စစ်တပ်လက်ချက်လို့ NUG အထောက်အထားတွေ ထုတ်ပြန်". Radio Free Asia (in Burmese). Archived from the original on 3 July 2022. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  16. ↑ Davis, Anthony (22 February 2022). "Wa an early winner of Myanmar's post-coup war". Asia Times. Archived from the original on 14 June 2022. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  17. ↑ "NUG နဲ့ အတူ ဘယ်သူတွေ ရပ်တည်နေကြသလဲ". The Irrawaddy (in Burmese). 25 April 2021. Archived from the original on 3 July 2022. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  18. ↑ "Kayah State Resistance Groups Reject Ceasefire with Myanmar Junta". The Irrawaddy. 17 June 2021. Archived from the original on 3 July 2022. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  19. ↑ J, Esther (23 June 2023). "Karenni BGF battalions confirm role in recent raids on junta outposts". Myanmar Now. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  20. ↑ "Myanmar Junta Outposts Fall to Karenni Resistance in Kayah State". The Irrawaddy. 26 June 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
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