Karen People: Their Plight and Marginalization the

Karen People: Their Plight and Marginalization The Karen people encompass an ethnic group living in Thailand and Southeast Asia which speaks the Sino-Tibetan language. The Karen are an ethnically diverse group of people: many of them are Skaw Karen and still others are Pwo Karen and Bwe Karen. This group makes up around 7% of the Burmese people and many of them live on the border between Thailand and Karen.

Approximately seven million Karen live in Burma and around 500,000 Karen live in small villages in Thailand, with even smaller pockets of the Karen in south Asian countries like India as well as other Southeast Asian nations. There are also populations of the Karen living as refugees in a number of western nations. In terms of survival, the bulk of the Karen peoples work as subsistence farmers, living within small villages, raising livestock and growing rice and vegetables.

They are a group of people who are guided by beliefs in spirit worship (Animism) often intermingling it with Animism in a harmoniously fashion. When it comes to Buddhism, the Buddhist monastery generally acts as a pillar of the community in Burma and the monks there are often leaders within the community while doubling as teachers, human rights activists, counselors and others.

The influence of Christian missionaries has had a marked effect on the Karen, causing them to become Christian (in amounts currently around 15%) and acting as a catalyst for many in giving up their traditional values and belief systems. For many decades, the Karen have been organized and led by the Karen National Union (KNU) with engaging in war against the central Burmese government since the late 1940s. This war was waged for the sole means of achieving independence for the group.

This is based on the historical condition of Burma, as they were colonized by the British in the 19th century, and the Burmese did not achieve their independence until decades later in 1948. However, the eventually receiving their independence did not make the situation instantaneously better, as the years of colonization led to disorganization and marginalization of certain groups, and a generally fractured state which led to civil war breaking out between the government, the Karen and other ethnic minority groups in large and small ways.

In fact, post-independence marked the period of growing pains and discord that are bound to occur with the removal of the British government, while the nation figured out where they stood; thankfully to many fascism could not rise to power as there was no military force to support it (Furnivall, 1949). Ultimately the Burmese Army got to power, and keeps the nation in Burmese dictatorship.

This has lent itself to creating and even more complicated situation as the government of Aung San Suu kyi has been elected in a democratic fashion, but cannot receive power as the Burmese army refuses to give it to them.

Even the most recent election was viewed as fixed as so many of the spots reserved in the new Parliament go to leaders within the military; largely this was viewed as an empty attempt to create a "discipline flourishing democracy" and people like the Karen who live in remote villages have seen little difference there.

In fact, unrest continues throughout this region and in the Karen state and is manifested through extortion and forced labor by the Burmese army and which is exacerbated by a landmine problem, forcing many of the Karen to migrate to refugee camps within Thailand. At this time, minimal conflict has occurred within the Karen State, but just last year the Burmese Army engaged in yet another offensive against the people of this area.

If one looks at history, the "Four Cuts" policy comes into play with relevancy and strategy, as a means for pushing the insurgents from the middle of Burma to the nation's more remote mountainous areas, thus, removing them from the help of the local population (which can offer them the help of food, money, intelligence, along with new recruits: the military leaders thus mapped the nation into designated zones (black, brown and white) which were thus guerilla-controlled, mixed government-insurgency controlled, and then government-controlled (Falise, 2010).

In the black zones, the soldiers were given the freedom to shoot at will (Falise, 2010). The result was ethnic cleansing at a rate which continues even to this very day: "Burmese soldiers, emboldened by a system that ensures total impunity, have engaged in murder, rape, torture, destruction, looting, forced labour, and child conscription. The army's daily oppression also prevails in the brown zones, although with a less brutal but more insidious facade, dubbed 'Burmanization' -- the gradual replacement of local tribes by ethnic Burmese settlers.

Life in the brown zones depends entirely on local commanders' good, or more often bad, moods. Reports of forced labor, economic exploitation, and all varieties of harassment are ever present" (Falise, 2010). Thus, it becomes clear that being free from political oppression is now one of the fundamental desires of the Karen people. They are now on the receiving end of clear and unadulterated oppression and it's a practice that absolutely must stop. For the Karen people, their freedom also now means being free from persecution.

The problems that are being experienced in Burma and in the surrounding areas have long been predicted and noticed by scholars (Fairbairn, 1957) and are currently reaching an exacerbated fervor. This paper will examine the primary political demands of the Karen ethnic minority along with the primary political organizations used by the Karen and the strategies they employ. Problems of the Karen Another massive problem that the Karen face is that Burma is now playing a larger figure in the war against terrorism.

There's a strong connection between the significant Muslim population which lives in Burma and the wider Islamic world (Selth, 2003). While this has been deliberately misrepresented at particular times, the impacts of this misrepresentation have been formidable and dire. In fact the needs and disfranchisement of the Muslim population in Burma has sparked the attention and interest of Bin Laden, and the impact of insurgent groups forging lines with such extremist organizations like Al Qaeda have been coming up more and more -- and are essentially, a growing phenomenon (Selth, 2003).

How this spells out a clear problem for the Karen should be obvious. Al Qaeda is one of the most formidable terrorist organizations on the planet. The fact that Burmese insurgent groups are joining forces with this highly powerful and well-organized terrorist organization is intimidating. It means that the Burmese Army will become more powerful, more violent and more heartless in its mass extermination of the Karen. Furthermore, the likelihood that it will join forces with various Al Qaeda cells is entirely likely.

Moreover, any alliance with Al Qaeda is likely to act as an "educational experience" for the Burmese army, as they learn new tactics of violence and destruction -- new strategies for harming people and for annihilating ethnic groups. "According to the relief organization Thailand Burma Border Consortium, between 1996 -- the year of the first comprehensive survey -- and 2009, some 3,506 villages in eastern Burma, the area most deeply affected by military oppression, were destroyed, abandoned, or forcibly relocated into communities under the army's control. Over 600,000 people have been displaced.

Pursued relentlessly, 13 armed ethnic groups agreed on a cease-fire with the junta from 1989 to the mid-1990s. Today, only a handful of armed organizations -- mainly the Karen National Union, the Karenni National Progressive Party, and the Shan State Army-South -- are still resisting the regime.

But 'cease-fire groups,' among them the powerful Wa and Kachin along the Chinese border, are increasingly ill at ease with the junta's new strategy to transform them into militias under its control before the general election planned for the end of this year" (Falise, 2010). Thus, the Karen are thus some of the innocent people who have been left to survive and endure this miserable existence.

While there are some humanitarian relief groups at work, who are providing medical treatment and counseling to these groups and some material relief, the melancholy destiny of violence, bullets and barbed wire is a truly horrible one for the Karen people and is the responsibility of the entire international community to rectify (Falise, 2010).

The realities of living as a member of a marginalized and at risk Karen village is captured by one journalist, Robert Young Pelton, in his famous essay, "The Black Zone": "democracy may have pushed Burma from an isolated nation to potential partner to the rest of the world. But a trip deep inside the rebel camps tells a different story. Most villages within Karen state are only accessible through a network of jungle paths.

Supplies are carried in by porters, many of them young women who carry up to fifty pounds up and down steep mountain routes. Medical supplies, as well as basic necessities, are smuggled in from Thailand then trekked to remote villages (2012). This essay aptly captures how the state of war and uncertainty have made life for the Karen peoples absolutely isolated; their freedom is often restricted from living life outside of the border of refugee camps.

The people generally have flimsy ways of protecting themselves from outside threats, using often recycled and vintage weapons, with really no plans in place if the Burmese army should show up or any other outside threat. Theirs is a precarious existence. Vulnerability appears to be a documented trend in the sheer existence of the Karen and one which has been a constant for them for a long time.

For instance, one scholar notes that the refusal of the Karen to grow opium, something which would no doubt give them spectacular cash gains and which would invariably change their lives, offering them untold financial stability and with it security, is reflective of the tribe as a whole (Hinton, 1983). The precariousness of their existence absolutely cannot be underestimated: "Being forcibly displaced peoples on the move, the Karen's strategies for survival and struggles are precarious and limited. Their transversal struggles are unlike those of people with citizenship.

Their ability to exploit the translocalities along the borders of Thailand and Burma, for example, has become contingent, to say the best, and at times very precarious. The fact that many struggles cannot be mentioned here, lest my Karen informants be in even more danger, demonstrates both Thailand's and Burma's sovereign power to threaten their lives, and perhaps mine too" (Tangseefa, 2006).

This excerpt demonstrates without a shadow of a doubt just how scary and uncertain life is for the Karen peoples and how little leverage they have right now in deciding their own fate. It's a truly intimidating time for them, as they're being manipulated by dual forces. Another problem that the Karen face is that those who do support them or seek to help them, often do so in an undemocratic, completely overbearing manner.

Starting back in the colonial period, a range of different players have merged in and out of Burma, offering political support, though quite often in a manner which rivals the ideas of Karen ethno-nationalism (South, 2007).

This has been most common with Christian elites, as they try to place an idea of "Karen-ness" on what is truly a very diverse society; the problem with this phenomenon is that their efforts are often buttressed by human rights groups and aid workers, as they all work together in imposing Karen unity from above via a truly divisive practice, thus sparking 60 years of ethnic conflict in Burma (South, 2007).

Ultimately the answer lives in helping civil society networks to better thrive among individual Karen communities and to really engage in a consociational approach in treating the issue of the Karen diversity (South, 2007). The undeniable displacement that has thus occurred to these groups of peoples is another epic struggle that the Karen are forced to confront.

In this case, "the scale and intensity of forced relocations and associated displacement and migration have, in some parts, undoubtedly produced a complete transformation in the human landscape, resulting in numerous long-term consequences requiring detailed research. These include implications of displacement on land-use patterns, land ownership, cultivation and farming, natural resource management, freedom of movement, settlement and many aspects of socioeconomic development" (Grundy-War & Yin, 2002).

In fact, when human movement engages in such a way across borders, it can't help but undo the view of geopolitics based on fixed territories: this is an undeniable byproduct of forced relocation that occurs as the result of political and ethnic conflict (Grundy-War & Yin, 2002).

The conflict between the desires of the Burmese military to create a level of "national unity" in connection with the "national space" of Myanmar, has impacted the displacements of thousands of the Karen, thus rupturing social, economic and cultural structures; such ruptures can only be rectified by enormous and focused efforts to help rebuild communities through independent humanitarian relief and the monitoring of human rights (Grundy-War & Yin, 2002).

Another form of controversy that at least needs to be acknowledged is the fact that there is some distinction between the Karen practice of Buddhism and Burmese Buddhism along with the state-centered perspectives on Theravada Buddhism (Hayami, 2011). Furthermore, social workers and comparable experts who have reached out to members of the Karen throughout the conflict have found that the bulk of these individuals still have a need for and a manifestation of spirituality which too often gets overlooked in the bigger themes of displacement and isolation.

In fact, social workers found an overwhelming theme of spirituality that arose when the Karen were interviewed; these findings underscored "the importance of developing culturally competent, spiritually sensitive responses into social work practice when working with people who have experienced displacement and subsequent trauma in their lives" (Worland & Vaddhanaphuti, 2013). This is particularly true given the strong presence of the Christian Missionaries with the Karen; while the Christian missionaries have offered some protection and support, they have also sparked a certain level of resentment and insecurity (Brant & Khaing, 1961).

This resentment and insecurity can be properly combated through culturally relevant and spiritually responsive care that engages with the Karen in a manner that is relevant to them. Still much of the problems which are imposed on the Karen, exist through the total stagnation of the Burmese people. Burma continues to have its own style of socialism, which separate it from other socialist nations, and yet it is still dependent on the aid and trade of many western countries (Kin, 1983).

This gives western nations an undeniable point of leverage in getting the Burmese nation to engage in more peaceful and civil behavior in the areas of conflict. Primary Political Demands of the Karen While one could assert that the primary political demands of the Karen are that they want independence and protection, this is also an oversimplification of their needs and wants.

It's difficult to outline the primary political demands of the Karen ethnic minority in Burma without first having a sense of the social and political transitions that have occurred in Burma. At this time, one can say unequivocally that the nation desires independence, and that they need this independence to be supported and unfettered by the government and the military state. The entire region needs to help in supporting, fostering and encouraging their autonomy and independence, rather than engaging in repetitive actions and empty gestures.

"Strategies for transition in Myanmar have tended to focus on elite-level politics, rather than grass-roots democratization and social mobilization. However, both approaches are necessary - although neither is sufficient in itself. While change at the national/elite level is urgently required, sustained democratic transition can only be achieved if accompanied by local participation" (South, 2004). The region and the Karen people need the military and the governing body to join them and to cooperate with them in their independence, fundamentally acting as a partner to them.

In granting them independence, the military body will be actively engaged in helping them to achieve it in a meaningful way. "The tentative re-emergence of civil society networks within and between ethnic nationality / minority communities over the past decade is one of the most significant - but under-examined - aspects of the social and political situation in Myanmar.

'Development from below', and efforts to build local democracy from the 'bottom-up', using local capacities and social capital, are underway in government-controlled areas, and in some ethnic nationality-populated ceasefire and war zones (including insurgent-controlled areas), as well as in neighbouring countries. However, the sector is still under-developed, and changes coming from civil society will be gradual, and need to be supported" (South, 2004). Support is key and it should not be underestimated in any way.

The only way that real development will occur is with support from both the government and the military. Thus, the strategic challenges which face these leaders who guide and support these communities are necessary to face and to determine. Another function is that of foreign aid. One absolutely must not forget the pivotal role that foreign aid can play during this precarious time in Burma's history and in supporting the debut of civil society once more in Burma.

However, in order for ceasefires to re-emerge with any reliability, there does need to be concerted effort by political elites as the conflict is indeed intense (Sout, 2004). In order for Burma's goals to be achieved there needs to be a proper melee of both a top-down and a bottom-up approach which can both engage in a big push for democratization, though these methods will still remain as just a fraction of the overall equation.

Furthermore, in supporting the Karen state in this manner, it would behoove all involved parties to gather a better sense of the nuances involved in the conflict. For instance, as one scholar writes, "Why insurgent organizations stay together over time and why they maintain the fight under stress are questions of major concern for our understanding of war duration, conduct, and outcome.

Structural integrity is the property of an organization remaining as a single intact entity, while cohesion refers to the creation and maintenance of cooperative effort toward the attainment of the organization's goals. Although closely related, the conflation of structural integrity and cohesion is problematic" (Kenny, 2010).

However, as scholars like this one have found, the factors which impact structural integrity are not the same ones which influence cohesion; moreover, there was the highest amount of disintegration within the military rank when there was the perception among soldier that commanders within the base region were not sharing a just burden of the war (Kenny, 2010).

This alludes to the idea that within armed forces, even insurgent ones, there needs to be a sense of sacrifice in order for cohesion to occur; one could argue that this discovery underscores the sacrifice that the military groups and international community need to make in order to promote peace in this area and independence for the Karen group as a whole. Understanding these factors is important, as these are the factors which empower the military to engage in the unrest which mars the nation.

However, the burden does continue to fall on the Karen people themselves and they still have an obligation to their own success. "The more villagers strengthen their own strategies to claim their rights, the more they will be seen as actors participating in the processes and decisions which affect them. In turn, local and international actors will be encouraged to work in ways that strengthen villagers' own strategies, rather than imposing strategies upon them" (Phan & Hull, 2010).

One of the major demands of the Karen is that they want their autonomy and independence and they wish to live an unfettered existence. This is related to the fact that one problem the Karen face is the fact that they are too easily and too often seen as a pawn by the greater political system. Their needs are too frequently not even taken seriously.

Furthermore, the people of this region generally lack the long-term attachments and loyalties to political entities that are greater than the clan, tribe or chiefdom (Thomson, 1995). The fact that Burma has struggled for so long with achieving its own level of autonomy and independence means that the success of minority groups like the Karen is all the more unlikely. However, it doesn't mean that it's impossible.

However, one of the major problems that the Karen people face is that the civil war that has aged on in their region for over 60 years has meant that their people have been the collateral damage of this unrest. "One of the lingering questions asked by human rights advocates and the international community is to what extent war crimes have been committed and whether the actions by the Burma Army amount to genocide.

Based on significant data collected in the field over the past decade, this article argues that forced displacement of the Karen ethnic group does arise to the international standard of genocide" (Milbrandt, 2013). Milbrandt is a scholar who makes indeed a strong and compelling case for the theory that genocidal intent is occurring to the Karen people, and that they are indeed underseige to be destroyed: the Karen people are in crisis (2013).

The Burmese army attacks the way in which the Karen are able to engage in a sustainable way of life and seeks to compromise their ability to stay in their homes and farms: there is a war being waged that attempts to prevent them from engaging in the sanctity of ordinary lives: raising their kids in safe environments and being able to feed their families and put food on the table in a consistent and sustainable manner.

"The Burma Army regularly, about once a month in the Karen and Karenni States, launches 1-4 battalion-sized sweeping operations in villages and areas where IDPs are suspected to be hiding. These troops harass civilians, loot homes, beat, rape and torture indiscriminately and sometimes burn homes or entire villages. They also place landmines in areas that they want to deny to the people and the resistance" (Milbrandt, 2013).

This is all done in a systematic pattern where around 50 or so battalions will be employed in two to four-week cycles: the impact is violence, traumatic and tragic. The Burmese army will approach a village and engage in mortar and machine-gun fire the entire enclave: once the village has experienced certain destruction, the troops will further destroy and harm the homes -- looting and pillaging it. "Landmines are then laid in the village and on the routes that villagers use in and out of the village.

If a villager is seen, he or she is shot on sight" (Milbrandt, 2013). There is no uncertainty how evil and strategic these moves are: it is absolutely certain that the Burmese army seeks to destroy the Karen and that.