War and peace in the borderlands of Myanmar

In June 2011 fighting resumed between the Kachin Independence Organisation and Myanmar Army, ending a 17-year ceasefire. The unwillingness of local Kachin people and their leaders to agree to a speedy renewal of the ceasefire has frustrated many observers and policy-makers hoping for a national ceasefire agreement between the Myanmar government and principal armed ethnic organizations. Yet since the ceasefire collapsed, surprisingly little attention has been paid to understanding the Kachin experience of the ceasefire. This book brings together local activists with international academics and acclaimed independent researchers to reflect on these experiences from different perspectives. They also raise important and enduring questions about the social, economic and political development of Myanmar's 'border regions'. Crucially, the chapters offer vital lessons about the dangers inherent in ceasefire agreements when an 'armed peace' is implemented but not accompanied by a substantive commitment to political change.