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For the first time in the 16-year ceasefire, Burma’s military rulers publicly blamed the ethnic
Kachin Independence Army (KIA) for the latest bomb blast in northern Burma, calling the KIA an
“insurgent” group.

The junta controlled New Light of Myanmar newspaper said on October 15 that the KIA’s mine
killed two civilians and injured one more on October 13, in Mogaung Township, in Kachin State.

In the blast, U Myint Pe and U Aung Kyaw Thein were killed and U Win Bo was seriously
wounded and was sent to the Pinball Station Hospital, according to the paper.

The casualties were villagers from Pinkyaing Village, Pinbaw Village-tract. They were hunting at
Nwalabo Hill, about 10 miles to the west of the village controlled by the KIA (or the junta
so-called Kachin Special Region-2) at about 12 p.m. local time, when the KIA planted bomb
exploded, added the paper.

The location is near Pinball Railway Station- on the Myitkyina-Mandalay railway. It is under
control of KIA Battalion 5, based near Sinbo Town, in southern Kachin State, KIA sources said.

Wawhkyung Sin Wa, Deputy General Secretary of the Kachin Independence Organization
(KIO), the political-wing of KIA, declined to comment on the blast to the Thailand-based Kachin
News Group today. He would only say the KIA is investigating the blast.

Under the rights of self-protection policy, the KIA planted bombs around its territories after the
junta broke the ceasefire and took offensive military action in the Kokang territories in August
last year. The Kolang force is also called the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army
(MNDAA).

The KIO announced a policy shift in a statement released on August 30th. In it, the KIO clearly
stated it wants the military rulers to restore the genuine federal union with equal rights for ethnic
minorities in accordance with the historic 1947 Panglong Agreement, signed by Burmese leader
Gen. Aung San and ethnic leaders--- Kachin, Chin and Shan.

Currently, the ethnic armies of the Kachin, Shan, Mon, Karen, Karenni, Chin and Wa are
preparing for inevitable civil war with the Burman-led military rulers because of their rejection of

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the order from the military junta so-called State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) to
surrender their weapons.

Sources close to the ethnic armed groups said the Burmese military leaders plan to announce
soon that all ethnic armies who continue to demand self-determination and restoration of a
genuine federal union are considered illegal groups or terrorists and take military action to
eliminate them all.

It is considered unusual that the KIA was labeled as an “insurgent” group by the military when
being blamed for the blast, just 23 days before the junta-run countrywide election on November
7th.

Voting was cancelled in the entire KIO controlled region in Kachin State by the Election
Commission, on September 16.

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