Shans let down by seminar

Shans let down by seminar

Shans / History

King Naresuan forswearing allegiance to Pegu in 1584

A seminar held in Chiangmai's Wianghaeng on 29 July concerning the actual place of death of King Naresuan the Great (1555-1605) had somewhat put off the Shans who had arrived at the meeting with considerable eagerness. 

The principle speaker, Chaisri Chaiyawong, education inspector from Fang, said he was convinced that the king, revered by Thai and Shans alike, did not die in Mongharng (in Mongton township, opposite Chiangmai province) as previously held. Backed by old palace records, especially a translation from a Burmese court chronicle, by a Nai Taw during Rama V reign, he contended that the warrior king, as a matter of fact, died in Muanghaeng, 140 km northwest of Chiangmai and the district seat of Wianghaeng. 

The seminar, supported by Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, was attended by some academics from Chiangmai. The closing speech was delivered by Chao Duangduan na Chiangmai, Chairwoman of the provincial Culture Department. 

Shans, led by Paimuang Laisai, a former resistance commander, had little to say due to the time limit. "We urge our brethren to make final conclusions only after weighing all the evidences and the counter-evidences," said their representative. 

According to the accepted history, King Naresuan was on his way to relieve his ally, Prince Kham Kainoi of Hsenwi, who was under attack from joint Sino-Burmese offensive, when he suddenly took ill and died just before his crossing of the Salween. His unexpected death cost Shans their independence from Ava. 

The Shans, in any case, had very little evidence to support their stand as the monument in Mongharng, believed to be the king's memorial, was demolished in 1960 by the Burmese army. Another historical structure, Kengtung Palace, was also destroyed in 1991 much to the resentment of the populace. 

The seminar however did not adopt any definitive stand. 

The conveners of the seminar, led by the ebullient district officer Adisuan Nanthachaiyaphand, hoped that official endorsement from higher authorities, would change Wianghaeng from a "lost world" into a tourist destination. How tourism would help the cause of EGAT: project to excavate lignite coal from the area, however, was not discussed at the seminar. 

"This is aiding and abetting the Burmese military's design to cut off the ties between the Shans and Thais," concluded Paimuang. He was not alone.