(Toward the Political Dialogue on Constitutional Issues in Burma)Salai Ngun Cung Lian James J. Robinson Fellow Prelude: Political crisis, ethnic conflict, civil war, and all other problems facing by the people of Burma for over five decades is a byproduct of conflict of interests over constitutional principles between Burman and non-Burman nationals. The Burman ethnic

By Chao-Tzang Yawnghwe November – A Dialogue: From International to Home-Grown Since the May (2003) ambush in Monywa of Daw Aung San Suukyi’s motorcade by the regime, there has arisen two contending views of the prospect for dialogue and national reconciliation. They concern the question of whether  there can be a home-grown solution or other

Kenneth VanBik Department of Linguistics University of California, Berkeley 1.         Introduction This paper is an investigation of the origin of the two names Kuki and Chin which have been used as a cover term referring to many people and languages  in Manipur-Assam State (India), the Naga Hills (India),  Mizoram State (India), the Chittaguang Hills (Bangladesh),

By Lian H Sakhong As the title indicates, this paper investigates, by applying a comprehensive approach of ethno-symbolic theory, who the Chin are?  Why can they be described as separate ethnic group? What are their chief features that distinguish the Chin as separate ethnic nationalities from other human collectives or ethnic groups? And what criteria

By Salai Za Uk LingLakehead University Culture and religion together form an important part of Chin society. As such, historically these two elements are closely and inseparably intertwined with one another. In modern times, Christian religion is deeply rooted in Chin society. Since the first Chin conversion in the late 1800s following the arrival of

Lian H. Sakhong-Uppsala University Introduction The United Nationalities League for Democracy (UNLD), an umbrella political organization of non-Burman or non-Myanmar nationalities in Burma, was formed in 1988 following the nationwide democracy movement against three decades of General Ne Win’s dictatorship. From the very beginning, the UNLD adopted a policy aimed at the establishment of a

By Mandy Sadan, SOAS, London University I have been asked to make some comments on the subject of historical and societal dimensions of ethnic issues in Burma. This is no easy thing to do, not least because both of these subjects are vast in themselves. When we consider the broader historical and societal relations that

Conflict And State-Society Dysfunction   By Dr. Chao-Tzang Yawnghwe Introduction: The Problem of State-Society Dysfunction            Especially after the collapse  of Ne Win’s military-socialist Lanzin regime in 1988, the issue of “ethnic conflict” has, it might be said, drawn more attention from both observers and protagonists alike. This is all the more so the case