Sixty-one Years of Ta’ang Revolution

Friday 12 January 2024 represents the sixty-first Ta’ang Revolution Day. On 12 January 1963, the indigenous Ta’ang people of Myanmar formed the first revolutionary organisation to defend the basic human rights and land of the Ta’ang people.

Shedding light on the Ta’ang/Palaung people’s struggle and bringing transparency to the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and its ambitions illustrates the position of the Ta’ang people in the broader political conflicts of Myanmar today. Following the military coup on 1 February 2021, armed clashes between the TNLA and the Myanmar military have resumed. As we see a progressively weakening Myanmar military today, following the launch of Operation 1027 on 23 October 2023, the importance of the role of armed ethnic resistance groups for the future of Myanmar is ever more prevalent, with the Ta’ang people a core contributor.

Overview of the Ta’ang People

The Ta’ang people are an indigenous ethnic group of Mon-Khamar descent. They migrated from the highlands of present-day Mongolia to Shan State in today’s Myanmar in the sixth century. Ta’ang people also live in Yunnan Province of China, though the Ta’ang population is smaller there than in Myanmar. The main source of income for Ta’ang people comes from working on tealeaf plantations and producing the final tea product for consumers in Myanmar and China.

The Ta’ang Region

In the early days, Ta’ang chieftains or Sawbwas ruled over the Ta’ang Sun Kingdom. The earliest records date to the 1750s. These were historical records of ancestors of Namhsan hill Sawbwas. The last Sawbwa of Namhsan Hill (the Ta’ang Royal Hill Sawbwa) was Sao Hkun Pan Sein, and he ruled the Ta’ang Sun Kingdom from 1926 until the first military coup in Myanmar led by General Nay Win in 1962.

Ta’ang Education

Historically, the Ta’ang lived in the mountains with little transportation and no government schools. Some went to the mainland to attend civilian voluntary schools, volunteer shelter schools, or orphanages. Others joined monasteries and became monks or nuns to get an education. As a result, the literacy rate has historically been low among the Ta’ang population. However, since 2000 there have been Ta’ang organisations working on education within the Ta’ang community to improve education levels and infrastructure.

Ta’ang children at school in 2014

Ta’ang children at school in 2022

Early Ta’ang Politics

When the British occupied Northern Burma in 1886, the Sawbwas of Shan State were summoned to pledge their allegiance. During the pre-independence movement, Namhsan Sawbwa Sao Khun Pan Sein took the position of Chairman of Shan Sawbwa Council and was one of the signatories of the Panglong Agreement of 1947.

In 1946 the Palaung National Unity League (PNUL) was formed, led by Sao Khun Pan Sein. The aim of the PNUL was to achieve unity among Palaung nationals, improve social welfare, ethics and morality, encourage economic growth, and to enhance education and health. The PNUL was dismissed by the Myanmar military in 1964, after the coup of 1962, ending the role of Palaung political culture within the legal framework of Myanmar.

A Brief History of the Palaung/Ta’ang Armed Struggle

After the 1958 Nown Hsing Han armed struggle in Shan, two Palaung regiments became part of the Shan Army in northern Shan State. One of the sons of Sao Khun Pan Sein, Tar Khun Aye, led regiment number five and operated around Namhsan, while regiment number six was led by Tar Khun Thaung and operated around Namkham. In 1963, these two Palaung regiments separated from the Shan Army and formed the Palaung National Front (PNF) which was the first armed Palaung resistance group. The PNF was founded on 12 January 1963 – this date is recognised as Ta’ang/Palaung Revolution Day.

The PNF and its armed wing, the Palaung National Army (PNA), represent the first formulation of an armed political organisation of Ta’ang people. It would transition through various forms before becoming the Palaung State Liberation Front (PSLF) and the TNLA we see today. The PNF was transformed into the Palaung State Liberation Organization (PSLO) on 12 January 1976 and the military wing was called the Palaung State Liberation Army (PSLA). The era of the PNF and PSLO can be called the first part of the Ta’ang/Palaung Revolution.

After the 1988 uprising, the Myanmar military, then called the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC), took power. The SLORC strove for disarmament among ethnic groups, and in 1989 Ethnic Armed Organizations (EAOs) in the Northeastern region agreed to a ceasefire. In December 1990 the PSLO Secretary U Kyaw Yin agreed to a ceasefire with the SLORC. The ceasefire agreement was made informally between PSLO’s Chairman Tar Aik Mong, Chief of Staff Tar Nyi Lone and SLORC’s Secretary One Khin Nyunt – there was no formal agreement.

However, the SLORC did not implement the ceasefire, and after a few months continued to use armed force against the PSLO. The SLORC was abolished and reconstituted as the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) in 1997. The SPDC did not honour the SLORC’s ceasefire agreements.

Formation of the Palaung State Liberation Front (PSLF)

The Ta’ang political organisation the Palaung State Liberation Front (PSLF) was formed in 1992, led by Mai Tin Maung, Mai Joke Jar, Mai Aik Phone and Mai Aik Pann. They announced that they would continue to fight to establish a genuine federal union together with the oppressed ethnic groups.

Formation of the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA)

The first conference of the PSLF was held on 25 July 2000 on the Thai border, then followed by the second conference on 7 August 2005 at Mae Sot in Thailand. At the time of the third PSLF national conference on 11 October 2009 in Ruili, China, the new armed wing, Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), was formed.

The TNLA’s armed offensive began on 31 December 2011 when they crossed the Shweli (Ruli) River from the southern side of Namkham and re-entered the Shweli Valley area in the Ta’ang region. The fighting between the TNLA and the Myanmar Military began on 18 August 2012. Since then, the TNLA has been building up its forces in order to defend itself from the military.

In the TNLA’s infancy, its forces were relatively small. The military repeatedly called on the TNLA to abandon arms and believed the TNLA would be defeated by their offensive attacks. As the TNLA grew stronger and more areas came under the TNLA’s control, the TNLA developed different departments to achieve its political aims and strengthen its administration capacities.

PSLF/TNLA Goals and Fundamental Principles

One of the key goals of the current PSLF/TNLA is the formation of a Ta’ang State as a federal unit and a State of Myanmar. The PSLF/TNLA strive for equality for Ta’ang people as an ethnic minority and for the protection of the rights of the Ta’ang people and their land. While the TNLA is developing and working on the revolutionary process, the PSLF is simultaneously working to unite the Ta’ang people. The following are the fundamental principles of the PSLF/TNLA.

Political belief

The PSLF believes in the democratic system and will practice self-determination to preserve the Palaung population, area, literature and culture.

Avoiding ethnic or communal conflict

The PSLF seeks to protect the Ta’ang/Palaung ethnic group, but also endeavours to avoid armed conflicts within the Palaung people and between different ethnic groups.

Gender Equality

The PSLF embraces gender equality. Special arrangements are made for women to participate and lead at every level of the organisation.

Recruitment

The TNLA does not seek to recruit individuals from other ethnic groups, distinguishing it from many Ethnic Armed Organizations (EAOs) in Myanmar.

The Ta’ang Flag

The PSLF/TNLA flag is the same as the Ta’ang State Flag. It has a white central stripe with two green stripes above and below it and a circle of red in the centre. The red circle represents bravery and the Father Sun of Ta’ang people, and the two green stripes represent the green colour of the Ta’ang mountains and peace. The white background in the centre represents sincerity and purity, peacefulness and the freedom loving mind of the Ta’ang people.

Conclusion

Sixty-one years ago, the Ta’ang armed resistance was minute in numbers, but today the TNLA is estimated to have over 10,000 members. The TNLA and the Ta’ang people continue to strive for a Ta’ang State, and for their equality, justice, peace and prosperity in the future Myanmar.

This blog was written based on research involving 52 interviews in 2019-2021 with members of the TNLA and PSLF.

Lway Mownt Noon is a Research Fellow of Protective Fellowships for the Human Rights Defenders of Centre for Applied Human Rights (CAHR), University of York, UK.

References
The Irawaddy. 2023. “Myanmar’s Operation 1027 Against The Junta Two Months On.” 27 December, 2023. Available online at:
https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/conflicts-in-numbers/myanmars-operation-1027-against-the-junta-two-months-on.html

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