The livelihoods of Namhsan Township residents in the Palaung (Ta’ang) Self-Administered Zone of northern Shan State have been seriously affected by ongoing fighting between the Burma Army and the Ta’ang (Palaung) National Liberation Army (TNLA).
The fighting has made them scared to travel and made it difficult for them to go to their plantations, gather their crops and go to the cities to buy groceries.
U Thein Zaw, who represents the northern Shan State constituency of Manton in the Shan State Hluttaw (parliament) said: “In Namhsan, the residents are very afraid to go to the tea plantations, clear the land and gather firewood because skirmishes are frequently breaking out. They can only go to areas near the village. The local residents are facing some difficulties. They are a little scared because the region is unstable. They are having some difficulties making a living in Namhsan.”
Fighting between the Burma Army and the TNLA escalated after the first session of the Union Peace Conference was held in Naypyidaw from 31 August to 4 September. Since 29 October there have been over 20 skirmishes between the Burma Army and TNLA.
The TNLA information officer Major Mai Aik Kyaw said that the Burma Army has been firing heavy artillery onto roads, villages and areas around them since the end of October, which has made local residents too scared to go to their plantations.
Explaining the reasons for the recent skirmishes he said: “There would be no reasons to clash if there weren’t any offensives [by the Burma Army]. We aren’t going to their areas to attack them. The skirmishes break out because they come into areas where we are active.”
In the past month the TNLA has also been fighting with the Restoration Council of Shan State/Shan State Army (RCSS/SSA).
The only time the TNLA held formal peace talks with the government was at Muse on 31 July 2013 when a TNLA delegation led by Lieutenant-Colonel Tar Bone met with a government delegation led by the Union Peacemaking Working Committee (UPWC) vice-chairman U Aung Min.
The Palaung State Liberation Front (PSLF) was established in 1992. It re-organised and renamed itself the Ta’ang National Liberation Army in 2009.
The TNLA says that it wants self-determination for the Palaung region and that it has been trying to eliminate drugs in the areas under its control.
Translated by Thida Linn
Edited in English by Mark Inkey for BNI
