Sumlut Gun Maw is an officer of the Kachin Independence Army[1] who is currently serving as the vice chief-of-staff with the rank of brigadier general since 2009.[2][3][4][5]
Sumlut Gun Maw | |
|---|---|
 General Gun Maw at the KIO HQ | |
| Vice Chief of Staff of the Kachin Independence Organization | |
| Personal details | |
| Alma mater | University of Mandalay |
Early life and education
editGunmaw was born on February 5, 1963, in Dukahtaung, Myitkyina. He is the eldest among five siblings. He completed grade 10 at No. 1 Basic Education High School, Myitkyina, in 1979. Following this, in December 1979, he began studying at Myitkyina Regional College. Subsequently, in 1987, he earned a B.Sc in Physics from Mandalay University.
Career
editFollowing his graduation, he enlisted in the Kachin Independence Army in 1987 as a soldier. He became one of the youngest leaders of the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), after launching several innovative programs. Aside from his many years as a frontline soldier for the Kachin Independence Army,[6] he holds several key positions within the KIO, such as head of the National Information Services (NIS) and was a key negotiator for the peace talks with the government of Myanmar. He has been very active in improving and reforming the education system of the KIO.[7][8][9]
After attending a reconciliation conference in 2004, where he played golf in Yangon, he founded the Laiza Golf Club.[2] In 2009 he was appointed as the vice chief-of-staff with the rank of brigadier general.[2]
In 2013, he attended peace talks in Myitkyina where he was hailed by thousands of Kachins as the KIA's representative.[10] The talks resulted in a lessening of hostilities but not a complete ceasefire.[10][11]
In 2017, he assumed the role of vice-chairman of the KIO and participated in the Union Peace Conference - 21st Century Panglong in Naypyidaw as a member of the United Nationalities Federal Council.[12]
References
edit- ^ "Myanmar Stages Surprise Attack on Kachin; 20 Dead". Voice of America. 19 November 2014.
- ^ a b c Edward Wong (7 February 2012), "Myanmar's Guerrilla Golfers Take Time for a Few Rounds", The New York Times, p. 6
- ^ "General Gun Maw: 'If the military changes its behaviour, we will change our policy right away'". Frontier Myanmar. 26 January 2017.
- ^ "Interview: 'The Messages Aung San Suu Kyi Got Are Wrong'". RFA. 27 March 2017.
- ^ "KIO meet 'good omen' for Yangon talks: government". The Myanmar Times. 16 March 2015.
- ^ Cho, Phyo Thiha (2018-07-12). "Conflicting accounts of China's influence on northern armed groups in peace conference". Myanmar Now. Retrieved 2023-05-07.
- ^ "State-Run Media Misleads the Public About War, Says KIO". The Irrawaddy. 13 February 2017.
- ^ "Interview | When NCA Is Comprehensive, We Will Sign: Senior KIO Official". The Irrawaddy. 25 April 2019.
- ^ "Government proposes new dates for KIO talks". The Myanmar Times. 5 May 2014.
- ^ a b Bertil Lintner (2015), Great Game East – India, China, and the Struggle for Asia's Most Volatile Frontier, Yale University Press, p. 253, ISBN 9780300213324
- ^ Lintner, Bertil (19 January 2017). "No peace in sight for Myanmar". Asia Times.
- ^ "KIA General Gun Maw: 'To Talk and Live as Equals, That is Genuine Peace'", The Irrawaddy, 17 January 2017