The ethnic Kachin rebel armed group, the New Democratic Army-Kachin (NDA-K), officially converted to the Burmese Army-controlled Border Guard Force (BGF) in a ceremony yesterday, where rebel and Burmese military officials, were present, said NDA-K sources.
The ceremony transforming the three NDA-K battalions to three battalions of the BGF under the Burmese Army--- No. 1001, No. 1002 and No. 1003 was held in the rebel headquarters, Pangwah east of Kachin State near the Sino-Burma border from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. local time, said participants.
In the ceremony, the epaulettes on the military uniform of NDA-K soldiers were changed into those of the Burmese Army, said participants.
The military bases for the new BGF battalions remain unchanged. It will be the former NDA-K battalions such as No. 1001 at Chipwi, No. 1002 at Lu-pi in Pangwah and No. 1003 at Sinkyak in Kambaiti, according to NDA-K officials.
The junta's BGF module dictates that all the BGF battalions be commanded by new officers under 50 years of age. About 100 NDA-K military personnel, who are already over 50 have retired and they will receive monthly pension from the junta.
Yesterday’s Pangwah ceremony was attended by the NDA-K leaders Zahkung Ting Ying and two high ranking officials from the junta--- Maj-Gen Soe Win, commander of Northern Regional Command based in Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin State and Deputy Defense Minister Maj-Gen Aye Myint from the capital Naypyidaw.
Since yesterday’s ceremony, the group's 20-year-old name -- the "New Democratic Army-Kachin (NDA-K)" has officially ceased to exist. It will now be the "Border Guard Forces" under the Burmese Army.
The Kachin Independence Army (KIA) troops, led by Zahkung Ting Ying and Ze Lum split from the mother organization in 1968 and joined the Communist Party of Burma (CPB) for 21 years as Army Division No. 101.
The name "NDA-K" came after the split following the collapse of the CPB in 1989. Soon after, it signed a permanent ceasefire agreement with the Burmese military junta on December 15, 1989.
Former NDA-K leader Zahkung Ting Ying and retired officers are planning to contest the junta-conducted 2010 elections through the Kachin State Progressive Party (KSPP) led by retired Kachin Independence Organization (KIO)'s vice-president No. 2 Dr. Manam Tu Ja, said retired NDA-K officers.
Kachin people view NDA-K as a business-oriented organization rather than a political one.
