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KAREN
GUERILLAS - Insurgency in Karen State.
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Burma
has been torn by civil war since the end of colonial rule from
the British. One of the largest ethnic groups is the Karen-people.
For a long time they maintained their own state, Kawthoolei
or Karen land, in the east of the country bordering Thailand.
From its base in Manorplow the Karen |
National Union (KNU) and its armed wing the Karen National Liberation
Army (KNLA) led the armed struggle. In the late eighties they
where reinforced by Burmese refugees from the All Burma Student
Democratic Front (ADSDF) who escaped the crack
down on the democracy movement. The failure of different ethnic
groups to unite led to great success for the junta in the mid
90's. Today only a fraction of the KNU remains active and many
Karens are living as refugees in Thailand. Many other armed
groups have struck deals with the military junta (SLORC) or
entered the lucrative drug-trade. |
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