Burma Centre for Ethnic Studies (BCES), an independent think tank founded in March this year, launched its first publication in English about the country’s diverse armed movements today “for all those who are interested in peace and reconciliation in Burma,” according to its publishers.
The 268 page “By Force of Arms: Armed Ethnic Groups in Burma,” written by Paul Keenan, was launched at Chiangmai University’s Uniserv at 10:30-11:30 this morning.
“Without understanding why there are armed struggles in Burma, there is no way to establish genuine peace and reconciliation, or prevent another round of armed struggle,” said Dr Lian H. Sakhong, the BCES founder and director. “We hope the book will be useful for all those who are committed to finding a solution to the 60 year old armed conflicts in the country.”
At least 12 more books, mostly written in Burmese for what the BCES regard as its target audience — Burmese readers — are “in the pipeline” during the upcoming year. “Most of them will be about the history of each armed resistance movement, its leaders, past and present, and what forced them to take up arms,” the fighter-cum-scholar who had won the Martin Luther King Prize in 2007 explained.
The BCES, according to him, has already distributed more than 15,000 copies of “Democratic Practices” (August 2012) inside Burma, “1,000 in Naypyitaw alone.”
For more information on BCES, Please visit www.burmaethnicstudies.net.
