Asian_Geographic_Issue_4_2017

They are not only key to peace, but also to the

prosperity and well-being of the country. Suu Kyi has

tried to secure ceasefire agreements with all the ethnic

guerrillas, but the army keeps at its hostile operations,

often using artillery and aviation.

“We are willing to negotiate a ceasefire, but that’s

impossible when the military keeps bombing our

positions. We need to defend our people,” says Gun

Maw, a general in the Kachin Independence Army

(KIA). Meanwhile, internally displaced Kachin

inhabitants find themselves trapped in rudimentary

camps after fleeing from battle. “Soldiers keep ravaging

towns, raping, killing, and burning houses to the

ground. The situation of almost 100,000 displaced

people is critical,” explains Labang Dai Pisa – who

manages KIA’s camps – at one of the facilities in Jeyang.

IMAGES © ZIGOR ALDAMA

1942

Japan occupies Burma

1886

Britain takes full control of

Burma and annexes it to

British India

1937

Burma becomes a crown

colony, independent from

India

key events

1826

The Treaty of Yandabo closes

the first Anglo-Burmese

war and starts the British

colonisation of Burma