Resistance Day On The MountainIt took us longer to get there than to get back

Resistance Day On The MountainIt took us longer to get there than to get back

Saengjuen and myself started out from Maehongson in a Suzuki-Caribbean at 14:00, 20 May. Our destination: Yawdserk's Taileng Camp at the border about 70 kilometers away in the north. 

The road was okay until we branched off from the Maehongson-Pang Mapha highway. From then on, it was a hard and long drive along the uneven, slippery and muddy road to the village of Pangkham through the rain that had been, according to the local villagers, falling unceasingly for 3-4 days. 

It was only 6 kilometers from Pangkham to Yawdserk's headquarters. But it was a steep climb and took us more than an hour in the dark to get there. The passengers alternated their uncomfortable ride by getting off to push the 4 wheeler and walking through the mud. 

At last, at 22:00 we arrived there, our clothes wet and soiled. We were welcomed and treated to dinner by Suwanna and Awngmong, old friends since the late sixties. Music, both traditional and modern from a distance, kept reminding us that we were indeed there. 

We hit the sack at midnight. There was a chilly wind all night. And we slept fitfully although we were tired. Fortunately, by morning, the weather began to clear. 

A newsman who was one day ahead of us took in the view, of the fortifications, barracks and winding mud roads around us, exclaiming: "Yesterday, we could see no more than a few meters and I almost thought there was nothing for us to see". 

At 08:00, guests were given two plastic bags each, containing sticky rice and cooked dish in each. We then strolled through the mud again towards the parade ground where the ceremony was to be held. 

It was exciting to meet old friends again, though my days as a fighter that ended ignominiously in 1996 seemed ages ago. I felt I had already lived two lives: a student and then a fighter, and now been living through another as a newsman. Was there anything more in store? 

The ceremony began at 09:30, that was participated by about 600 fighters and guests, roughly half of each. Among them were 34 monks, some of whom were well known and widely respected. 

Sao Lawnmawn, who took the chair, announced that the Shan State Army's War Council had taken a decision to regard the Resistance Day as the Armed Forces Day of the Shan State, explaining the 31-men band that gathered in Mongton 42 years was the beginning of today's Shan State Army. Some well-wishers pointed out to me later this single act, without consultation with the people, many of whom regarded the resistance as popular uprising, might subject the Shan State Army and its leaders as no better than the enemy they were supposed to be fighting against. (The Burma Army had also enraged many people by changing the Resistance Day, 27 March, that marks the Burmese people's struggle against Japanese invader into as the Armed Forces Day). 

Speeches by Sao Yawdserk, Commander -in-Chief of the SSA, Sao Aungmart, Chairman of the Preparatory Committee of the Restoration Council of Shan State and Sao Khurhsaen followed. Messages by the Palaung State Liberation Front and the Shan Democratic Union were also read out. 

A short sermon given by a young monk was memorable. "Even Shan is capable of something that is useful for the country. We must therefore not try to ignore other Shans but try our beast to co-ordinate with them. As the old Shan saying goes: A sparrow lifts a strand of thatch, while the elephant lifts a log of wood." He was obviously trying to remind the Shans of the importance to preserve unity. 

By 14:00, Saengjuen and I were once again on the road. Thanks to the weather today, we got back to Maehongson at six and to bed at nine. 

Khunesai Jaiyen