Myanmar rebels recapture headquarters after 30 years

Sub: IR

Sec : Places in news

Context:

The Karen National Union (KNU), an ethnic rebel group from Myanmar, announced that it had recaptured its former headquarters, Manerplaw, from the Myanmar military (junta) after almost 30 years.

About Manerplaw:

Manerplaw was a village in Kayin State, Myanmar, on the Moei River. It was the proposed capital of an independent state governed by the Karen people, known locally as Kawthoolei.

History of Manerplaw:

The base, located on the Thai border, was a symbol of the KNU’s resistance against Myanmar’s military rule.
Manerplaw had served as the KNU’s stronghold and headquarters, where it coordinated its fight for autonomy and rights for the Karen ethnic minority group.
Following a split within the Christian-majority KNU, the junta and a breakaway Buddhist faction captured the base in 1995.
The KNU forces were forced to retreat into Thailand, and the Myanmar junta renamed the area Kayin State. The Democratic Kayin Buddhist Organization, a military ally of the junta, took control of the region after the KNU’s departure.

About Karen community:

The Karen, also known as the Kayin, Kariang or Kawthoolese, are an ethnolinguistic group of Tibeto-Burman language-speaking people.
These Karen groups reside primarily in Kayin State of southern and southeastern Myanmar. The Karen account for around 69% of the Burmese population.