Background
Burma gained its independence from the United Kingdom in 1948. Immediately afterwards, communist rebels began an uprising against the new government. Uprisings and ethnic conflicts began breaking out in various provinces of Burma continuing into 1949. The Karen, led predominantly by the Christian Karen National Union (KNU) began fighting for an autonomous Karen state, Kawthoolei, in the eastern part of the country. The situation worsened when Buddhism was made the official religion, and questions regarding the rights of the Muslim Rohingya, Christian Karen, Chin, Kachin and other peoples under federalism were never really addressed; this was exacerbated by clauses in the constitution that granted nominal rights of secession to some groups. Due to the split of the party in power, the Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League (AFPFL) became a transitional military government from 1958 to 1960.
The 1962 Burmese coup d'état brought Ne Win to power, and widespread human rights violations in frontier areas followed, intensifying the insurgency. Today organizations out of the ethnic groups of the Karen and Shan (Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army) in the east of the country fight against the government. The increasing persecution of the Rohingya people in the western part of the country and racialization of Islam has led to the formation of small but active armed groups in the region, using refugee camps in Bangladesh as bases. Also in other regions, there are sporadic battles. Due to the conflicts, around 160,000 Burmese refugees live in Thailand and many more live in other countries in the region.
These insurgencies were supported or used by foreign states, exacerbating the isolation, suspicion and concern among Burmans over both their minorities and foreign powers. Some British had supported the Karen; East Pakistan (and then Bangladesh) backed the Muslim Rohingyas on their border with Middle Eastern backing. The Indians were said to be involved with the Kachin and the Karen. The Chinese assisted the CPB (later the Wa), the Naga and Kachin rebels. The United States supported the Kuomintang, and the Thai a wide variety of rebel groups, essentially creating buffer states or zones. Prior to the ceasefires, the largely Burman-dominated armed forces made futile annual dry season campaigns, only to see the rebels return after they left.
Recently, around 25 different ethnic groups have agreed ceasefires with the military government.
Read more about this topic: Internal Conflict In Burma
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