Kachin Defense Army

Kachin Defense Army
ကချင်ကာကွယ်ရေးတပ်ဖွဲ့
Participant in the Internal conflict in Myanmar
Active 1961 (1961)–January 2010 (2010-01)
Ideology Kachin nationalism
Leaders Mahtu Naw[1]
Headquarters Kawnghka, Kutkai Township, Shan State
Area of operations Shan State
Strength 1,500[1]
Originated as Kachin Independence Army
Allies

Myanmar Government of Myanmar

Opponents

State opponents

Union of Myanmar (until 2010)
Battles and wars

Internal conflict in Myanmar

The Kachin Defense Army (Burmese: ကချင်ကာကွယ်ရေးတပ်ဖွဲ့; KDA) was an armed insurgent group that operated in northern Shan State, until its conversion into a "border guard force" in January 2010.[1]

History

The KDA was formerly part of the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) as its 4th Brigade, until it split from the parent organisation, the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO), and moved their headquarters to Kawnghka, Kutkai Township, Shan State.[1] To some extent, the KDA gained territory abandoned by the Mong Tai Army (MTA) after their dissolution.[2]

In 2010, the KDA accepted a proposal by the State Peace and Development Council, the then governing body of Myanmar, to transform into a "border guard force". The proposal was intended to bring security to local Kachin people under the KDA's governing, but instead led to the disarmament of 1,300 KDA members. The KDA surrendered their heavy weapons and mortars to the Northeastern Regional Command, in accordance to the "conversion process". The group was also split into two smaller factions, with 100 members in each group.[1]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Burmanet » Kachin News Group: KDA transformed to militia groups by Burma junta". www.burmanet.org. Retrieved 22 January 2016.
  2. ↑ fas.org - Kachin Defense Army (KDA)


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