The Ta'ang National Liberation Army ( my, တအောင်း အမျိုးသား လွတ်မြောက်ရေး တပ်မတော်;
abbreviated
An abbreviation (from Latin ''brevis'', meaning ''short'') is a shortened form of a word or phrase, by any method. It may consist of a group of letters or words taken from the full version of the word or phrase; for example, the word ''abbrevia ...
TNLA) in
Myanmar
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
(Burma), is the armed wing of the
Palaung State Liberation Front (PSLF).
The TNLA is known for their opposition to drug trade, conducting operations where they actively destroy poppy fields, heroin refineries and
meth lab
A rolling meth lab is a transportable laboratory that is used to illegally produce methamphetamine.Staff writerMethamphetamine, meth-lab assessment and clean-up" ''Forensic Applications Consulting Technologies Inc.'' Retrieved on 2009-02-14. Rol ...
s.
The TNLA claims that they arrest opium smugglers regularly and the narcotics seized are publicly burned on special occasions to deter drug trade.
History
The TNLA was originally founded as the Palaung State Liberation Organization/Army (PSLO/A), which signed a ceasefire agreement with the government in 1991 and disarmed in 2005. After the dissolution of the PSLO/A, Ta'ang (Palaung) leaders
Tar Aik Bong and
Tar Bone Kyaw founded the TNLA alongside the PSLF to continue fighting for the self-determination of the
Ta'ang people
The Palaung ( my, ပလောင် လူမျိုး ; Thai: ปะหล่อง, also written as Benglong Palong) or Ta'ang are a Mon–Khmer ethnic minority found in Shan State of Burma, Yunnan Province of China and Northern Thailand. I ...
. The TNLA is presently allied with the
Kachin Independence Army
The Kachin Independence Army (KIA; Kachin: ''ShangLawt Hpyen''; my, ကချင်လွတ်လပ်ရေးတပ်မတော်) is a non-state armed group and the military wing of the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO), a pol ...
and the
Shan State Army - North, and have been conducting operations alongside them in northern
Shan State
Shan State ( my, ရှမ်းပြည်နယ်, ; shn, မိူင်းတႆး, italics=no) also known by the endonyms Shanland, Muang Tai, and Tailong, is a state of Myanmar. Shan State borders China (Yunnan) to the north, Laos ( ...
.
Following the
2010 general election and
constitutional reforms in 2011, the government created the
Pa Laung Self-Administered Zone
The Palaung Self-Administered Zone ( my, ပလောင် ကိုယ်ပိုင်အုပ်ချုပ်ခွင့်ရ ဒေသ ) is a self-administered zone consisting of two townships in Shan State: It was created as a separate ...
in northern Shan State as a special self-administration zone for the Ta'ang people. The region is one of the most underdeveloped in the country, with few schools and hospitals.
Clashes with
Tatmadaw
Tatmadaw (, , ) is the official name of 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 th ...
resumed after the
military coup
A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...
, with TNLA alongside its allies,
AA and
MNDAA
, logo = Flag of the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army.svg
, caption = Flag of the MNDAA
, active= – present
, leader = Peng Daxun
, ideology = Kokang nationalism Separatism
, partof = Myanmar National Truth and Justice Party ...
, attacking a police station south of
Lashio
Lashio ( ; Shan: ) is the largest town in northern Shan State, Myanmar, about north-east of Mandalay. It is situated on a low mountain spur overlooking the valley of the Yaw River. Loi Leng, the highest mountain of the Shan Hills, is located ...
, killing at least 14 police officers and burning the station to the ground. TNLA and MNDAA further launched attacks in multiple locations in Northern Shan State on 4 and 5 May 2021, inflicting heavy casualties on the Myanmar military.
Combined forces of TNLA and
SSPP clashed with
RCSS in March and April 2021, injuring several civilians and displacing thousands.
Tar Bone Kyaw, the second-in-command of TNLA, voiced his support for the
National Unity Government
A national unity government, government of national unity (GNU), or national union government is a broad coalition government consisting of all parties (or all major parties) in the legislature, usually formed during a time of war or other nat ...
formed in opposition to the military junta.
Abductions
On October 17, 2020, TNLA abducted a local woman from
Mogok
Mogok (, ; Shan: , ) is a town in the Thabeikkyin District of Mandalay Region of Myanmar, located north of Mandalay and north-east of Shwebo.
History
Mogok is believed to have been founded in 1217 by three lost Shan hunters who discovered ...
and demanded 60 millions of kyats and beaten until ransoms were payoff.
On December 5, 2020, also in
Mogok
Mogok (, ; Shan: , ) is a town in the Thabeikkyin District of Mandalay Region of Myanmar, located north of Mandalay and north-east of Shwebo.
History
Mogok is believed to have been founded in 1217 by three lost Shan hunters who discovered ...
, another local man was also abducted by TNLA.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ta'ang National Liberation Army
Paramilitary organisations based in Myanmar
Rebel groups in Myanmar
Guerrilla organizations