Myanmar

Question 1

Who and when was the Panglong Agreement signed?

Answer 1

Pre colonial independent people: Chin, Kachin, Shan, and other people from Burma Proper formed the Union of Burma by signing the Treaty
12 February 1947

Question 2

What principles was the Panglong Agreement based on?

Answer 2

Voluntary association
Political equality
Right of self-government in respective homelands
“Right of secession” from the Union after ten years of independence

Question 3

Instead of becoming a federal union, Burma became a _____

Answer 3

Quasi-federal union with a strong connotation of a unitary state
Burma people controlled all state powers and governing systems

Question 4

Which three ethnic nationalities were not officially invited to the Panglong Conference?

Answer 4

Karen
Arakan
Mon
Futures not properly discussed

Question 5

What does “One ethnicity, one language and one religion” refer to?

Answer 5

Ethnicity of Myanmar
Language of Myanmar batha-ska
State religion of Buddhism

Question 6

What means did U Nu opt for to achieve nation-building?

Answer 6

Cultural and religious assimilation by promulgating Buddhist as a state religion

Question 7

Military regime supplemented national integration by _____

Answer 7

Imposing ethnic assimilation into Myanmar

Question 8

When was Aung San assassinated?

Answer 8

19 July 1946 by U Saw

Question 9

What led to the promulgation of Buddhism as the state religion in 1961?

Answer 9

Revision of Aung San’s version of the Union Constitution

Question 10

Why did Chin and other non-Burma nationalities consider the promulgation of Buddhism as a violation of the Panglong Agreement?

Answer 10

Aung San and the leaders of non-Burma nationalities had agreed to form the Union based on the principle of equality
Viewed the Union constitution as an instrument for imposing “a tyranny of majority”

Question 12

Motto of Ne Win’s language policy

Answer 12

One voice, one blood, one nation

Question 13

1962 Printers and Publishers Registration Law
1965 Censor Law
What were the impacts of these laws?

Answer 13

Stumbling blocks for publications of ethnic languages (Curriculums and teaching materials)
Basic rights to promote non-Burman languages, cultures, belief systems severely curtailed

Question 14

Why was the inability to promote non-Burman culture a problem?

Answer 14

Survival of ethnic nationalities in Burma heavily dependent on whether they can preserve, protect and promote their ways of life as fundamental rights

Question 15

What is stated in the 1974 Constitution? (Peak of national language policy)

Answer 15

Myanmar batha-ska adopted as official language
Ethnic languages can be used for communication purposes between gov and ethnic states, but no mechanisms/institutions were provided to preserve, protect and promote ethnic languages

Question 16

How did Ne Win disguise the national language policy?

Answer 16

Under the programme “Burmese Way to Socialism” as its “nation building process”

Question 17

What does BSPP stand for? What was it purpose?

Answer 17

Burma Socialist Program Party, to implement BWS

Question 18

Tatmadaw was promoted as

Answer 18

“The guardians of the people and protectors of the Union”

National institution and state mechanism

Question 19

“Four-cut” strategy, the Tatmadaw military’s doctrine in 1968, aimed to

Answer 19

Cut food supply to insurgents
Cut protection money from villagers to insurgents
Cut contacts between people and the insurgents
Make people cut off the insurgent’s head

Question 20

To cut off information in ethnic areas,

Answer 20

Successive military regimes in Burma have prohibited the publication of any information in ethnic languages
No newspapers, no independent radio station, no printing house for any ethnic language

Question 21

Why were 100000 indians repatriated between April 1963 and June 1965?

Answer 21

Under program to increase the wealth and holdings of Myanmar nationals
Indians has dominated Myanmar’s commerce

Question 22

When did 500,000 poor urban residents get forcibly relocated to rural areas?

Answer 22

1989-1992

Question 23

Insurgent groups of ethnic nationalities

Answer 23

KNU: Karen National Union 
KIO: Kachin Independent Organisation
SSA: Shan State Army
NMSP: New Mon State Party
KNPP
ALP
CDP

Question 24

Why was the National Democratic Front (NDF) significant?

Answer 24

Formed exclusively by the non-Burman ethnic nationalities

Question 25

Aims of NDF

Answer 25

Establish a genuine federal union, based on principles of national self-determination, political equality and progress of all nationalities
Abolish chauvinism (exaggerated nationalism), military bureaucratic dictatorship and the unitary system
Ruled out a one party state

Question 26

What was main financial source for ethnic armed groups?

Answer 26

Black market taxation, sustained by Ne Win’s regime of mismanagement, nationalisation and centralised socialist economic policy

Question 27

Demonetisation of countries three highest denominations

Answer 27

5 September 1987

Question 28

March 1988

Answer 28

Brawl at tea shop led to death of a student at the hands of the Police, resulting in violent campus wide disturbances

Question 29

SLORC

Answer 29

State Law and Order Restoration Council

Question 33

What did General Ne Win opt for as means of ethnic “forced assimilation”?

Answer 33

National language policy of Myanmar batha-ska

Removed rights of the country’s religious and cultural minorities, especially minority’s language right