Chinese instructor at militia training course

Chinese instructor at militia training course

An officer from China is one of the two instructors conducting a training course for the militia units in Mongton township, opposite Chiangmai province, following months of weeding out undesirable militia leaders, according to sources on the border.

"We don't know what his real name is," said one source. "But everyone calls him Lao Maw-hsing. He's about 35 and definitely an officer coming over from across the border."

The other instructor, they said, was Captain Kyaw Myint Lwin, about 40, from Rangoon. He doubled as an interpreter.

Together, they have been training the 46 militia members from 4 village tracts in the township since 1 March on General information gathering, Military tactics, Building trust among the populace, Combatting enemy infiltration, Leadership and Intensive intelligence work. The course will last for 45-days.

"All began when on 28 February, Lt-Col Hla Myint, Commander of IB 65, issued an order that each tract send 12 selected members of its militia force to his command post to report for training," said a source, whose information tallied with several others. "But Hpa-khay could only manage 10 to attend training."

In addition, the village tracts of Hpa-khay, Maeken, Mongharng and Poongpakhem were also required to collect monetary contributions from the villagers for the expenses: K. 1,500 per day per trainee for food and K. 1,000 per trainee for the instructors as a token of gratitude at the completion of the course.

Following the Pakhee battle, across from Fang, 160 km north of Chiangmai last April and May between the Burma Army and the Shan rebels, a number of militia leaders, both Shan and Lahu, were arrested and some disappeared, said the sources.

Update: 1 April

There are 10 militia units in Mongton with a total strength of 459 men and 325 assorted weapons.