DKBA and KNU in secret talks
Posted on October 22, 2009
Filed Under Burma news, Karen news | Comments Off
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The Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) and the Karen National Union (KNU) have been holding secret talks aimed at reuniting the two armed Karen groups it has been revealed.
The Democratic Voice of Burma quotes sources close to the groups as saying talks began on October 16.
A letter from an influential Buddhist monk, U Thuzana, the patron of the DKBA, prompted the talks. Following recent violent clashes between the two groups, he wrote urging both sides to “take lessons from past consequences”.
He urged them to reunite before Karen New Year, in December.
The DKBA split from the KNU in 1995, and signed a ceasefire agreement with Burma’s ruling military junta. U Thuzana has been widely blamed by many Karen for causing the split.
In June, the DKBA backed by the Burmese Army launched a major offensive against the Karen National Liberation Army, the KNU’s armed wing. That offensive caused over 4,000 villagers to flee across the border into Thailand (see: 7th Brigade Headquarters falls).
Although details of the talks between the KNU and DKBA were not made public, a senior KNU official told the Mizzima News that reuniting the DKBA with the KNU would be difficult. General-secretary, Zipporah Sein, said the KNU had set preconditions for mobilising the DKBA: Don’t oppose the people, don’t get involved in drug trafficking.
“It is still difficult to reunite with the DKBA but we will persuade and mobilize them gradually. Now many of them are convinced about the SPDC’s ways,” she said.
Yesterday, it was revealed that over 100 DKBA soldiers had defected to the KNU since June (see: DKBA defectors return to the KNU).
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