The Shan State National Army (;

abbreviated An abbreviation () is a shortened form of a word or phrase, by any method including shortening, contraction, initialism (which includes acronym), or crasis. An abbreviation may be a shortened form of a word, usually ended with a trailing per ...

SSNA) was a Shan nationalist insurgent group that fought against the then ruling

State Peace and Development Council The State Peace and Development Council ( ; abbreviated SPDC or , ) was the official name of the Military dictatorship, military government of Burma (Myanmar) which, in 1997, succeeded the State Law and Order Restoration Council (; abbrevi ...

military regime A military dictatorship, or a military regime, is a type of dictatorship in which power is held by one or more military officers. Military dictatorships are led by either a single military dictator, known as a strongman, or by a council of mi ...

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

(Burma). The commander of the SSNA was Colonel Kan Yod.

History

The Shan State National Army was formed on 7 July 1995 by disgruntled members of

Khun Sa Khun Sa (, ; 17 February 1934 – 26 October 2007) was an ethnic Han drug lord and warlord. He was born in Hpa Hpeung village, in the Loi Maw ward of Mongyai, Northern Shan State, Burma. Before he assumed the Shan name "Khun Sa" in 1976, he w ...

Mong Tai Army The Mong Tai Army (; sometimes transcribed Muang Tai Army; abbreviated MTA), was an insurgent group consisting of soldiers from the Shan minority in Myanmar, founded in 1985 by Khun Sa. It had up to 20,000 armed troops at its peak, and was ...

(MTA). The group claimed the MTA was too focused on trafficking narcotics from China into Myanmar, rather than focusing on the self-determination of the

Shan people The Shan people (, , or , ), also known as the Tai Long (တႆးလူင်, ) or Tai Yai, are a Tai ethnic group of Southeast Asia. The Shan are the biggest minority of Burma (Myanmar) and primarily live in the Shan State, but also inhabi ...

. The two leaders and 500 other insurgents decided split from the MTA. By September 1995, around 2,000 more insurgents had joined the SSNA, leaving the MTA headquarters at Ha Mong and establishing a base in the town of

Hsipaw Hsipaw (; Tai Nuea: ᥔᥤᥴ ᥙᥨᥝᥳ), also known as Thibaw (), is the principal town of Hsipaw Township in Shan State, Myanmar on the banks of the Duthawadi River. It is north-east of Mandalay. Hsipaw contains 11 wards, including Sout ...

. The Mong Tai Army eventually surrendered to government forces and disbanded after the mass desertion. The SSNA signed a

ceasefire A ceasefire (also known as a truce), also spelled cease-fire (the antonym of 'open fire'), is a stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions often due to mediation by a third party. Ceasefires may b ...

with the government at the end of 1995.

2005 government operation

In April 2005, soldiers of the

Tatmadaw The Tatmadaw, also known as the Sit-Tat, is the armed forces of Myanmar (formerly Burma). It is administered by the Ministry of Defence and composed of the Myanmar Army, the Myanmar Navy and the Myanmar Air Force. Auxiliary services include ...

and the

United Wa State Army The United Wa State Army ( Parauk: , zh, s=佤邦联合军, t=佤邦聯合軍, p=Wǎbāng Liánhéjūn; , ), abbreviated as the UWSA or the UWS Army, is the military wing of the United Wa State Party (UWSP), the ''de facto'' ruling party of ...

conducted a joint operation against the headquarters of the SSNA, resulting in the arrest most of their leaders. On 11 April 2005 and 19 May 2005, two brigades of the SSNA surrendered and disarmed after being instructed by the Tatmadaw to leave the area to government forces. Following the operation, SSNA commander Sai Yi and about 5,000 to 6,000 soldiers left the SSNA and joined the Shan State Army - South (SSA-S), led by Colonel Yawd Serk.

Dissolution

After the imprisonment of most of its leaders, the SSNA brigades either surrendered and disarmed or joined the SSA-S in May 2005. * The 1st Brigade was disarmed * The 6th Brigade joined the SSA-S * The 9th Brigade joined the SSA-S * The 11th Brigade under U Kanna was disarmed * The 16th Brigade joined the SSA-S * The 19th Brigade surrendered but did not disarm

References

External links

Photos of United Wa State Army (UWSA) and Shan State Army-South (SSA-S) military outposts along the border of Thailand, Chiang Rai province

Shanland
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shan State Army - South Shan militia groups Politics of Myanmar 1995 establishments in Myanmar Ethnic armed organisations in Myanmar

History

2005 government operation

Dissolution

See also

References

External links