History behind current conflicts
Burma
The Asian country of Burma is and underdeveloped country with India to the west of it and China, Laos, and Thailand bordering it to the east. Burma has over 47 million citizens dispersed between fourteen different “ethnic states” that divide the country. These states are separated by not only their own culture, religion, and language; but each state also has its own armed military. Although this country is rich with resources it has been subject to poverty, violence, and other crimes against humanity due to a corrupt government dictated by the military force known as the Tatmadaw (Heck).
The violence in Burma started back in 1962 when the, then called junta, army shot protesting students and blew up Rangoon University Student Union. These protests originally started after the newly formed democratic government was overthrown in a military coup by General Ne Win after the end of WWII and the end of British Colonial rule. The protests continued for many years until the government established the State Law and Restoration Council, now renamed the State Peace and Development Council which still run the country. It was at this time that the junta military renamed Burma to Myanmar (Heck).
To try and gain control and acceptance of the government, the government allowed democratic elections and the formation of political parties in 1990. One political party to rise from this opportunity was the National League for Democracy. This party won the elections in a landslide with 80% of the votes. The elections were soon declared illegitimate and the military resumed marital law and the National League for Democracy’s leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, was imprisoned. The only state to stand up to the junta was Karen. In response to Karen not cooperating with the military, the military burned down over 3,200 villages, forced civilians to relocate or work, planted landmines, executed and raped many Karen civilians, and took children to fight as child soldiers. Since the start of violence against Karen an estimated half million people have been displaced (Mears).
It wasn’t until May of 2008 when the cyclone hit that the Burmese Government really outdid itself. When the cyclone hit and left thousands of civilians helpless the Burmese Government withheld all help and left countless people to die, especially in Karen (Heck).
Since then the government held a referendum of a new constitution and withheld aid to bribe the states to vote for it which would give the military even more power. To this day the Tatmadaw are still in power and Karen is still fighting against them (Mears).
The violence in Burma started back in 1962 when the, then called junta, army shot protesting students and blew up Rangoon University Student Union. These protests originally started after the newly formed democratic government was overthrown in a military coup by General Ne Win after the end of WWII and the end of British Colonial rule. The protests continued for many years until the government established the State Law and Restoration Council, now renamed the State Peace and Development Council which still run the country. It was at this time that the junta military renamed Burma to Myanmar (Heck).
To try and gain control and acceptance of the government, the government allowed democratic elections and the formation of political parties in 1990. One political party to rise from this opportunity was the National League for Democracy. This party won the elections in a landslide with 80% of the votes. The elections were soon declared illegitimate and the military resumed marital law and the National League for Democracy’s leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, was imprisoned. The only state to stand up to the junta was Karen. In response to Karen not cooperating with the military, the military burned down over 3,200 villages, forced civilians to relocate or work, planted landmines, executed and raped many Karen civilians, and took children to fight as child soldiers. Since the start of violence against Karen an estimated half million people have been displaced (Mears).
It wasn’t until May of 2008 when the cyclone hit that the Burmese Government really outdid itself. When the cyclone hit and left thousands of civilians helpless the Burmese Government withheld all help and left countless people to die, especially in Karen (Heck).
Since then the government held a referendum of a new constitution and withheld aid to bribe the states to vote for it which would give the military even more power. To this day the Tatmadaw are still in power and Karen is still fighting against them (Mears).
Darfur
Darfur is located in the largest African country, Sudan and is the bridge between the Arab concentrated North Sudan and the African concentrated South Sudan. Sudan has always had conflict between the north and the south which is what caused the two Sudanese Civil Wars. These two wars lasted a total of about forty years putting it as one of the longest wars known in the world. The second war ended officially in 2005, two years after conflict in Darfur started, with the signing of a peace agreement (Heck).
Darfur is a mix of the south and north ethnic groups and is the poorest and least developed states in Sudan. To gain rights back from their country, a rebel group known as the Sudan Liberation Army launched an attack on a government base in Darfur in 2003. As a quick solution to the rebellion the Sudan government enlisted in militias of Arab tribes called the Janjaweed for help. The government supplied the Janjaweed with weapons and training and gave them the simple instructions to wipe out the rebel ethnic groups: The Fur, the Zaghawa, and the Massalit (Heck).
The Sudanese Army would bomb the villages in the morning while the Janjaweed would ride in on horseback later to murder the men and rape the women and then move on to the next village. This continued until over 400,000 civilians had been killed and another 2.5 million others had been displaced from their homes (Heck).
But it’s not just the Janjaweed that are killing Darfuris. The 2.5 million civilians that have already been displaced are now suffering and dying from disease and hunger (Heck).
Darfur is a mix of the south and north ethnic groups and is the poorest and least developed states in Sudan. To gain rights back from their country, a rebel group known as the Sudan Liberation Army launched an attack on a government base in Darfur in 2003. As a quick solution to the rebellion the Sudan government enlisted in militias of Arab tribes called the Janjaweed for help. The government supplied the Janjaweed with weapons and training and gave them the simple instructions to wipe out the rebel ethnic groups: The Fur, the Zaghawa, and the Massalit (Heck).
The Sudanese Army would bomb the villages in the morning while the Janjaweed would ride in on horseback later to murder the men and rape the women and then move on to the next village. This continued until over 400,000 civilians had been killed and another 2.5 million others had been displaced from their homes (Heck).
But it’s not just the Janjaweed that are killing Darfuris. The 2.5 million civilians that have already been displaced are now suffering and dying from disease and hunger (Heck).
Democratic republic of congo
The Congo is a country in Africa that has always been exploited for its natural resources such as Coltan. Coltan is a mineral used especially in electronic devices that is illegally exported out of the country. The Congo was originally ruled by Belgian until 1960 when it was granted independence, with Patrice Lumumba as Prime Minister and Joseph Kasavabu as President. In 1965 Colonel Joseph Desire Mobutu took over control of the Congo through a coup and the support of Belgium and the United States. During Mobutu’s 32 year rule in the Congo, thousands of Hutus fled from Rwanda after the 1994 Rwandan genocide. Mobutu sided with the remains of the Hutu power regime while Rwanda and Uganda backed Congolese rebel, Laurent-Desire Kabila, who was against Mobutu. In 1997 Kabila took power in the Congo and broke with Rwanda and Uganda. It was this break that caused Rwanda and Uganda to invade the Congo and spark the flame of violence. This violence killed over 5.4 million civilians (Heck).
Although steps have been taken towards peace, such as a peace agreement in 2002 and successful elections in 2006, the violence still continues. The current conflict in the eastern Congo began in August 2007 when the Congo tried to integrate Tutsi rebels into the national army (Heck).
One of the weapons of war used against the civilians in the Congo is widespread rape. Over 3,500 cases were reported in only the first six months of 2008. Another American study in 2011 reported that 1,000 women are raped daily. Of the survivors 50% of these women are under eighteen years of age (Mears).
To this day over 5.4 million civilians have been killed since 1998 and over 1.3 million civilians have been displaced from their homes.
Although steps have been taken towards peace, such as a peace agreement in 2002 and successful elections in 2006, the violence still continues. The current conflict in the eastern Congo began in August 2007 when the Congo tried to integrate Tutsi rebels into the national army (Heck).
One of the weapons of war used against the civilians in the Congo is widespread rape. Over 3,500 cases were reported in only the first six months of 2008. Another American study in 2011 reported that 1,000 women are raped daily. Of the survivors 50% of these women are under eighteen years of age (Mears).
To this day over 5.4 million civilians have been killed since 1998 and over 1.3 million civilians have been displaced from their homes.