Insein Battle(အင္းစိန္တိုက္ပြဲ)

Karen Youth Seminar
8 to 11 January 2009
AUSTRALIA KAREN ORGANIZATION INC
Complied by:Mahn Chit Sein

Before the armed conflict of the Kare revolution began,the KNU Central Organisation
me,bers were Saw Ba U Gyi,Saw Pu,Saya Tha Htoh,Mahn James Tun Aung,Mhan Ba
Khin,Mhan Ba Zan, Saw Tha Din, Saw Hunter Tha Hmway, Saw Sandey,Saw Aung
Win,S'Gaw Maw Lay,U Zan,Saw Belley and Mrs Loo Nee

As soon as the armed comflict began, these Central Organisation members were scattered
Saw Ba U Gyi, Mahn James Tun Aung,Mahn Ba Zan, Saw sankey,S'Gaw Maw Lay, U
Zan and Saw Belley were in Insein.Saya Tha Htoh was in Ahlone-Sann Chaungand was
arrested. Saw Tha Din was in oulmein and was arrested along with Saw Po Chit.
Saw Hunter Tha Hmway was in Moulmein. Saw Pu was in Myaung Mya and negotiated with
the AFPEL and joined the government.
After the Karen armed resiatance movements started, the heaviest engagements
were those of Insein and NyaungLayBin.The Karens had beem able to occupy Insein
and NyaungLayBin.Before the Insein battle took place, the combined forces of Insein,
Thamaing and Gyogon,together with Captain Tha Aye Gyaw UMP(Union Military
Police) unit,amounted to more than two hundred.
At that time, in Insein town and in the Thamaing road junctionaresa,the AFPFL
deployed moe than two thousand troops.They were stationed thereto disarm the Karens
living in their enclaves in Insein and Thamaing.Over in Mingaladon,they were two
artillerycompanies comprising former infantry soldiers under the command of Major
Aung Sein.Furthermore.there were some Burma army KarenSignals and
Communication troops.Just before January 31st,1949,AFPFL troops from the Thamaing
road junction began to attack the Thamaing Kawehgyan area. That was the beginning of
the Insein battle. The attack that day was repulsed by the Kawehgyan KNDO troops, the
enemy sustained heavy lossess,and withdrew.After the information was obtained about
the attack on the Insein-Thamaing quater,by the enemy,the entire artilley unit from
Mingaladon.commanded by Majoy Aung Sein,arrived in Insein to join the KNDO troops
and entered the battle.That enening,these artilley and the KNDO troops made a
combined raid on the army supplies depot at Mingaladonand returned with weapons.
They returned with quite a large amout of mainly small arms and ammunition,and on
their way back to Insein,they were joined by the Karen NCO's and other ranks of Burma
signals Crops stationed in Mingaladon.As the enemy reached Kawehgyan,civilians fronm
Kawehgyan and Thamaing evacauted to Insein.Just before the Insein battle began,Karen
students and coeds of the rangoon University also came over to Insein.These students,
along with the Insein Seminary studenta as well as civilians were armed with the weapons
from the Mingaladon depot.At the point,the Insein Karens bearning arms numbered
nearly a thounnd.
With the arrival of the Thamaing civilians and the increase in population in the
Insein area,the problwm of the food supplies was encourtred.To obain these supplies,
the Insein town would have to be occupied.there were two thousand troops in the
Insein city area,deployed there to fight the Karens of Insein.In ordered to have the
supplies,plans were made to attack and occupy Insein.After having decided to attack at
5.00AM on February the 1st, the Insein leader, preaches,and elders gathered to pray for
success.At 5AM, inaccordance with the plan,the erstwhile artillery troops,now turned
infantry soldiers,led by Major Aung Sein penetratedthe middle defense of the army and
negan attacking them from the rear.
Simultaneousil,other Insein troopstook suprise frontal offensives ant with the
enclosing tactics set upon them, the enemysuffered heavy lossess,many of them
dead and wounded,some simply retreated in chaos, and were completely defeated. The
Insein bazzar was bourned down.By 8:00AM,all the enemy troops werecleared and the
fighting ceased. Insein town was occupied. Because fell, 8 rice mills and 10 rice
warehouses came under our occupation. In those 10 warehouses,there were more than
fifty thousand bags of rice aand analmost unlimited supply of "Bo Case"bean, a variety
of red bean,(introduced onto Burma by Brayton Case,an American agriculural
missionary who stared the Pyinmana Agricultural school in1923,and became a great
success).With the acquisition of the rice warehouse,Insein troops and civilians were
able to use much of the content. A large amount of supplies was obtained.As soon as we
gained possession of Insein town,Rangoonbecame a city under siege.At that point, the
town of Twante was occupied by our troops. And since we occupied Insein at that point,
land and riverine routes to and from Rangoon city were served. The AFPFl government
had lost contact with outsiders at threat point in time,and hence was derogatorily
deferred to as the 7 mile square government(or a government with real easte of only 7
miles in diameter).The enemy began to attack Insein Karens troops with a reinforcement of two
hundred soldiers under his command.Insein town by that time had the strendth of
approximately more than fifteen hundred armed men.
We had defended Insein, the battle having lasted during 1949 from January 31th to
May 21th,for a total of 111 days.Durind that time, the enemy had to get reinforcements
from the districts to fight and reoccupy Insein. There were heavy asa well as light
engagements practically every day.The enemy had on its side the battalions of 1st Chin
Rifles,the 5th Burma Rifels,UMP (Union of Burma Military Oolice), Leveys, Rangoon
University student Volunteers,etc., along with Naval vessels, Air Fo4rce fighters and
bombers,armored vehicles,and artillery troops.We resisted for 111 days and withdrew
wounded. On our side,thwere were approximately over one hundred and eighty deaths of
combined combatans, and more than 800 wounded.