The Karen National Union is a political organisation with an armed wing, the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), that claims to represent the Karen people of Myanmar (Burma). It operates in mountainous eastern Myanmar and has underground networks in other areas of Myanmar where Karen people live as a minority group.
Bo Mya was a Karen leader born in Papun District, which is in present-day Karen State, Myanmar. He was a long-standing chairman of the Karen National Union (KNU), a political organisation of the Karen people, from 1976 to 2000. He stepped down to become vice-chairman in 2004, and retired in 2004 from all public offices, due to poor health.
The Karen National Liberation Army Burmese: ကရင်အမျိုးသား လွတ်မြောက်ရေး တပ်မတော်; abbreviated KNLA) is the military branch of the Karen National Union (KNU), which campaigns for the self-determination of the Karen people of Myanmar. The KNLA has been fighting the Burmese government since 1960s as part of the Karen conflict, which has been ongoing since 1949.
The Panglong Conference, held in February 1947, was a historic meeting that took place at Panglong in the Shan States in Burma between the Shan, Kachin and Chin ethnic minority leaders and Aung San, head of the interim Burmese government. Aung Zan Wai, Pe Khin, Bo Hmu Aung, Sir Maung Gyi, Dr. Sein Mya Maung and Myoma U Than Kywe were among the negotiators of the historical Panglong Conference who negotiated with Bamar representative General Aung San and other ethnic leaders in 1947. All these leaders unanimously decided to join the Union of Burma. On the agenda was the united struggle for independence from Britain and the future of Burma after independence as a unified independent republic.
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.
Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan was the secretary general of the Karen National Union (KNU), an insurgent group in Myanmar.
The Democratic Karen Buddhist Army was an insurgent group of Buddhist soldiers and officers in Myanmar that split from the predominantly Christian-led Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), one of the largest rebel factions in Myanmar. Shortly after splitting from the KNLA in December 1994, the DKBA signed a ceasefire agreement with the government of Myanmar in exchange for military and financial assistance; provided that it supported government offensives against the KNU and its allies.
The Communist Party of Burma (CPB), also known as the Burma Communist Party (BCP), is a clandestine communist party in Myanmar (Burma). It is the oldest existing political party in the country.
Bo Nat Khann Mway, born Saw Lah Pwe and also known by his nicknames "Bo Moustache" and "Mr. Moustache", was a Karen military officer and commander-in-chief of DKBA-5, an insurgent group in Kayin State, Myanmar (Burma).
Ceasefires in Myanmar have been heavily utilized by the Burmese government as a policy to contain ethnic rebel groups and create tentative truces. The first ceasefire was arranged by the State Law and Order Restoration Council in 1989, specifically spearheaded by Khin Nyunt, then the Chief of Military Intelligence, with the Kokang-led National Democratic Alliance Army, which had recently split from the Communist Party of Burma due to internal conflicts.
The Karen conflict is an armed conflict in Kayin State, Myanmar. It is part of the wider internal conflict in Myanmar between the military government and various minority groups. Karen nationalists have been fighting for an independent state, known as Kawthoolei, since 1949. The Karen National Union (KNU) and its Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) are the most prominent Karen rebel groups. Hundreds of thousands of civilians have been displaced by the conflict, many of whom fled to neighbouring Thailand and survive in refugee camps.
Kawthoolei State, formerly known as Karen State, is a state of Myanmar. The capital city is Hpa-An, also spelled Pa-An.
The Democratic Karen Buddhist Army - Brigade 5, also known as the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army and the Klo Htoo Baw Battalion by the Burmese government, is a Karen Buddhist insurgent group in Myanmar. The group was led by Bo Nat Khann Mway, also known as "Saw Lah Pwe", until his death in 2016.
The Union Peace Conference – 21st Century Panglong was a peace conference, the first session of which was held from 31 August to 4 September 2016 at the Myanmar Convention Centre 2 in Naypyidaw, Myanmar (Burma). Three follow-up sessions were held in May 2017, July 2018, and August 2020.
The Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA), officially the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement between the Government of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar and the Ethnic Armed Organisations, was a landmark ceasefire agreement between the government of Myanmar and representatives of various ethnic insurgent groups, officially known as "ethnic armed organisations" (EAOs) by the government. The draft was agreed upon by a majority of the invited parties on 31 March 2015, and the agreement was signed by President Thein Sein on 15 October 2015. The signing was witnessed by observers and delegates from the United Nations, the United Kingdom, Norway, Japan and the United States. A ceremony is held by the government annually on the anniversary of the signing of the agreement.
The Shanni Nationalities Army is a Shanni insurgent group active in northern Sagaing Region and Kachin State, Myanmar (Burma). It was founded as a group in 1989 but was transformed into an armed group in January 2016 by expelled Shanni members of the Kachin Independence Army. The SNA has five objectives – to gain statehood, to fight drugs, to establish a federal Union, to build unity among all Shan sub-groups, and to conserve ecological balance.
Thuzana, also known as the Myainggyi-ngu Sayadaw, was a Karen Theravada Buddhist monk based in Myaing Gyi Ngu, Kayin State, Myanmar. He was the leader of the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), an ethnic insurgent group, until its dissolution in 2010.
The Karen–Mon conflict is a series of armed clashes between the ethnic rebel armies of the Karen and Mon peoples. The Karen National Liberation Army and the Mon National Liberation Army have clashed sporadically since 1988, mostly around the Myanmar–Thailand border at Three Pagodas Pass.
Lay Kay Kaw Myothit is a town in Myawaddy Township, Kayin State in southeastern Myanmar. Nine miles in the south of Myawaddy, it is close to the border with Thailand.
Colonel Saw Chit Thu is a Karen military officer and former insurgent commander who is the current general secretary and executive advisor of the Central Command of Border Guard Forces (BGF). As the leader of the BGF, Chit Thu became a person of considerable influence in the border area.
Kawthoolei 
