In Memoriam

Posted on February 16, 2008
Filed Under Burma news, Mae Sot |

ITwo days ago, Pado Mahn Sha, the secretary general of the Karen National Union (KNU) was killed at his home in Mae Sot by two unknown gunmen.

His death is a massive loss to the Karen people, to the Burmese democracy movement and to all who stand on the side of justice, who believe in the rights of the oppressed against the oppressor.

The exact details of what happened on Thursday afternoon may never be clear, I have heard at least two conflicting stories and judging by the speculative ideas being put forward in different media outlets, it is clear nobody has a fix on the truth. But no matter which story you believe, it is not hard to see the hand of Burma’s military behind this audacious assassination.

Mahn Sha had a reputation within the democracy movement as a forward thinking leader. He was prepared to put aside the interests of the Karen for the good of the country as a whole.

I first met Mahn Sha a few years ago, and at the time he spoke of the need for the junta to begin meaningful dialogue with the country’s ethnic minorities and the opposition National League for Democracy.

He also stressed the need for unity among the opposition. He said: “Victory depends on our strength, both political strength and military strength and our organization.” “It depends on our alliance with other ethnic minorities and with the democratic movement.”

Mahn Sha was a Buddhist, one of the few to hold high rank among the mainly Christian KNU leadership. As such, he was instrumental in preventing divisions within the KNU from worsening and helped stop the organization from splintering along religious lines – which had already happened with the breakaway of the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), which has become a pro-junta militia.

As well as being a unifying force on the political front, Mahn Sha was someone who cared passionately about his people. When we met, he spoke at length about the needs of the Karen people. It seems that even from his home in Thailand, he was intimately familiar with the problems facing ordinary Karen inside Burma.

Mahn Sha’s death is a tragic loss and my prayers are with his four children and all the Karen people at this time.