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Bo Mya (born Htee Moo Kee; 20 January 1927 – 23 December 2006) was a Karen rebel leader born in Papun District, which is in present-day Karen State, Myanmar. He was a long-standing chairman of the Karen National Union (KNU), a political organisation of the Karen people, from 1976 to 2000. He stepped down to become vice-chairman in 2004, and retired in 2004 from all public offices, due to poor health.<br/><br/> Bo Mya was among a significant number of Karens who joined the British — specifically in Bo Mya's case, Force 136 — during World War II, with whom he fought the Japanese from the East Dawna hills in 1944 to 1945.<br/><br/> After the Karens declared independence from Burma in 1949, Bo Mya quickly rose to a position of pre-eminence in the Karen movement, earning a reputation as a hard and ruthless operator. Based at Manerplaw ('victory field') close to the Thai-Burma border, the KNU under his control, and its military wing the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), was probably the most successful of the ethnic rebel organisations fighting the Yangon / Rangoon government in the 1970s and 1980s.
A hand-drawn, hand-coloured watercolour from the late 19th century by an unknown Burmese artist.<br/><br/> The name of the ethnic group featured appears near the top of the picture in Shan script (left), Burmese script (Centre) and Khun script (right). Khun script was formerly used in Kengtung / Kyaingtong in eastern Shan State and in Lan Na or Lanna, northern Thailand.<br/><br/> The Karen are an ethnic minority that is indigenous to Burma, and also has a small population in Thailand, including many who are refugees from Myanmar. A Sino-Mongolian group, the Karen have an estimated population today of some 5 million.
The Karen are a major ethnic group of Burma, though several hundred thousand live in northern Thailand. Linguistically Tibeto-Burman, the Karen maintain a legend that dates them back to the Gobi Desert of Mongolia. There are several branches of Karen—the Red Karen (Karenni), Sgaw Karen and Pwo Karen. There is also the hilltribe of Padaung, better known as 'Long-neck Karen'. In present-day Myanmar, the Karen rebel army, the KNU, has continuously fought a bloody civil war with the central Burman government since 1948.
The Karen are a major ethnic group of Burma, though several hundred thousand live in northern Thailand. Linguistically Tibeto-Burman, the Karen maintain a legend that dates them back to the Gobi Desert of Mongolia. There are several branches of Karen—the Red Karen (Karenni), Sgaw Karen and Pwo Karen. There is also the hilltribe of Padaung, better known as 'Long-neck Karen'. In present-day Myanmar, the Karen rebel army, the KNU, has continuously fought a bloody civil war with the central Burman government since 1948.<br/><br/> The main traditional Lao instrument is the flute-like khene (kaen) which is made of bamboo. The khene (also spelled khaen, kaen and khen) is a mouth organ of Lao origin whose pipes, which are usually made of bamboo, are connected with a small, hollowed-out hardwood reservoir into which air is blown, creating a sound similar to that of the violin.<br/><br/> Today associated with the Lao of Laos and Northeast Thailand, similar instruments date back to the Bronze Age of Southeast Asia. In Cambodia, it is used among the ethnic Lao population of the province of Stung Treng and is used in lakhon ken, a Cambodian dance drama genre that features the khene as the premiere instrument.
The Karen are a major ethnic group of Burma, though several hundred thousand live in northern Thailand. Linguistically Tibeto-Burman, the Karen maintain a legend that dates them back to the Gobi Desert of Mongolia. There are several branches of Karen—the Red Karen (Karenni), Sgaw Karen and Pwo Karen. There is also the hilltribe of Padaung, better known as 'Long-neck Karen'. In present-day Myanmar, the Karen rebel army, the KNU, has continuously fought a bloody civil war with the central Burman government since 1948.<br/><br/> The main traditional Lao instrument is the flute-like khene (kaen) which is made of bamboo. The khene (also spelled khaen, kaen and khen) is a mouth organ of Lao origin whose pipes, which are usually made of bamboo, are connected with a small, hollowed-out hardwood reservoir into which air is blown, creating a sound similar to that of the violin.<br/><br/> Today associated with the Lao of Laos and Northeast Thailand, similar instruments date back to the Bronze Age of Southeast Asia. In Cambodia, it is used among the ethnic Lao population of the province of Stung Treng and is used in lakhon ken, a Cambodian dance drama genre that features the khene as the premiere instrument.