Synopsis of the Modern Karen

Article by Spencer Zan

During the days of British rule in Burma the British government used Karen soldiers to quell rebellion and contain mutiny by nationalistic elements among the Burmese. The British depended on the Karen for their loyalty and honesty and used Karen soldiers and police forces extensively on many occasions to keep law and order.

The Karens were thought to be one of the earliest settlers in Burma traveling down from the North, many authors believed, from Mongolia or the Gobi desert, and settled down in the Deltas of the Irrawaddy. Later migrants like the Burmese and the Talaings drove many Karens into the hills of the Pegu Yoma and many others migrated down south to the Tenasserim while others crossed into Thailand. After the British occupied lower Burma they recruited Karens into the British colonial army and later used these soldiers to help conquer upper Burma. This undoubtedly is one reason the Burmese in general do not trust the Karen.

During WW II, the Karen army serving in the Burma Rifles remained loyal and retreated with the British army to India. But karen population in large tracts, villages and towns and suffered loss of life and property at the hands of Burmese riffraff's recruited by the Japanese into a national army named the Burmese Independent Army (BIA) along their march into Burma. The BIA bombed churches in the Tavoy area while service was still in progress. Karen communities in other villages and towns were attacked by the BIA which committed indiscriminate killings of Karen civilians including women and children. Many prominent Karen civic and church leaders were brutally murdered. This started a general communal clash between the Burmese and the Karens all because the BIA started the killings and looting which was retaliated by Karens who lost their loved ones and properties. The BIA cited their reason for the killing to the loyalty of the Karens to the British. True, the Karen as a whole remained loyal to the British  and many villages were raised to the ground by the Japanese because the Karens harbored British spies and agents during the occupation. But rebel against the Japanese they did not.

The Karen soldiers who retreated with the British now returned to Burma with the allies and fought shoulder to shoulder with other ethnic soldiers like the Kachins and the Chins to drive out the japanese Imperial Army. At this point those responsible for bringing the Japanese into Burma also revolted against the Japanese and joined forces with the allies.

The Karens were highly spoken of and praised for their bravery and loyalty and it was no wonder that after all that happened during the war, the Karens were looking forward to being rewarded with a state of their own because Burma was demanding independence from the British and the Karens certainly did not wish to be ruled by the Burmese. It must be noted at this point that although the Karens do not trust Burmese politicians,  they have no animosity against the general Burmese population. Even those who have been victimized or have had abhorring experiences at the hands of the Burmese are forgiving.

The Karens felt the utmost unbelief and let down by the British when Burma was granted independence without any consideration for the future of the Karen people. The ensuing demonstration and political in fight by the Karens finally led to incidents and clashes led to the Karen insurrection. It is however odd that the Karen uprising started without the Karen firing the first shot. The first shot and many more shots thereafter were fired by the Burmese levies, a private army of the then Prime Minister U Nu, Is it not obvious therefore  that the Karens were forced by the hand of the Burmese premier to defend themselves to be named rebels?

The Burmese people are not the enemies of the Karen people. Politicians and the military dictators are the enemies of the Karen people.

Article by Spencer Zan