Myanmar - Myanmar army "set to attack rebels"

BANGKOK: Myanmar's army is poised for a major assault on Kachin minority rebels, the guerilla group said Thursday, despite calls for an end to the violence which has cast a shadow over the new regime's reforms.

Around 2,000 government forces have moved into place around the northern town of Laiza -- a key rebel stronghold, an official for the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The apparent troop build-up follows calls by UN chief Ban Ki-moon on Monday for an end to fighting, which has forced thousands to flee into neighbouring China.

"They are preparing to attack the KIA base in Laiza... they have reinforced a lot of troops and sent a lot of artillery but have not attacked yet," the official said, claiming rebel forces number around 3,000.

Civil war has gripped parts of Myanmar since independence in 1948.

But Myanmar's government has agreed ceasefires with several ethnic rebel groups as part of reforms since coming to power last year, a move also aimed at the international community which links eased sanctions with the peace process.

In January President Thein Sein's government told the military to halt all offensives in ethnic minority conflict zones.

But violence in the Kachin area, reignited after a 17-year ceasefire was shattered last year, has continued to rage prompting fears it could obstruct national peace.

Khin Yi, the minister of immigration who has been involved in negotiations, in January conceded the president's orders were not always carried out in the remote and hostile combat zones.

"Sometimes, the order (not to attack) did not reach the grassroot level," he told AFP.

Analysts doubt whether the president exerts full control over local military units and speculate that the KIA could be a useful enemy for an army keen to retain its influence -- and budget -- as Myanmar undergoes dramatic reform.

"There has been talk for weeks now that a major offensive is being planned," said Nicholas Farrelly, a southeast Asia expert at the Australian National University.

"But the KIA has prepared for such a showdown for many, many years. I would not under-estimate their capacity for significant counter-attack."

The international community condemned the violence after tens of thousands of people were displaced by fighting.

State media rarely offers information on army operations in the area, but the English-language government mouthpiece New Light of Myanmar has reported a string of alleged KIA attacks in recent days, some wounding civilians.

But the Kachins denied the allegations, saying the stories were aimed at legitimising the military assault.

The regime has surprised observers with a series of reforms, including talks with democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, who took a seat in parliament Wednesday, and the release of hundreds of political prisoners.

Recently, Thein Sein changed the government negotiating team with the Kachins, appointing among others ethnic Shan vice-president Sai Mouk Kham, the KIA source said.

"The president is trying to remove hardliners" from top positions in the team, according to Win Min, a Myanmar expert at the Vahu Development Institute.

But the Kachin rebel official claimed the move was merely a "game" for the sake of "showing an ethnic face" in the government side.

- AFP/cc

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