Internal Inconsistencies of Tatmadaw: What It Says vs. What It Does

I said last time that I was going to try and find a Tatmadaw perspective, or justification, for the continued conflict between ethnic groups and the military. The consensus, as it seems from examining various articles and sources, is that these conflicts are virtually always Tatmadaw-initiated. Furthermore, I could not find a single article quoting a Tatmadaw member in any capacity whatsoever. While this does bias my claim that the conflicts are instigated by the military, the lack of rejection of that claim from the Tatmadaw does hint at its veracity. Another thing I noted in the articles is that beyond not having a Tatmadaw opinion or perspective, no journalistic mention of trying to get one was ever made. I'm not sure whether this is the result of overwhelming bias towards the Tatmadaw within Myanmar or simply because it's accepted that the Tatmadaw won't give its opinion on these matters.

Regardless, it is concerning to see an abundance of armed conflict involving the Tatmadaw so soon after the PPC, as well as the myriad reasons for this conflict taking place. I linked a couple of articles describing instances of this just to provide some variety. In one case, the Tatmadaw was claimed by Shans to have attacked a drug rehabilitation center, perhaps having mistaken it for a recruitment center for the Shan State Army-South (SSA-S). In another case, the cause of the conflict is thought to be the Tatmadaw's desire to clear an area in Karen State so that construction of a Hat Gyi Dam can be initiated. In a third case, no reason is even speculated for having caused the Tatmadaw initiative.

Regardless of the underlying motives, however, it does seem clear as if the discontinuity between what the Tatmadaw claims it is trying to achieve in formal or political settings like the PPC, and how it actually interacts with the rest of the Myanma people.

Additional Reading:
http://www.bnionline.net/news/network-media-group/item/2329-burma-army-b...

http://www.bnionline.net/news/karen-state/item/2372-fighting-directly-li...