Description:
"Karen identity is problematic, as peoples known as ?Karen? do not share a common
language, culture, religion or material characteristics. Most of the research on Karens has
been conducted in Thailand, but the dominant ?pan-Karen? identity is a product of social
and historical forces in Myanmar, where this study is focused. In the main part of this
paper, I reveal the subjective criteria that have come to signify pan-Karen identity. My
primary source material consists of internal literary discourses. In particular, I have drawn
on the historical texts of two British colonial-era authors: T. Thanbyah and Saw Aung Hla.
Three signicant concepts appear in their works and subsequent internal discourses on
Karen identity: that Karens are oppressed, uneducated and virtuous. In the latter part of
the paper, I review contemporary Myanmar government policy on ethnic identity, highlighting
the assigned role of ?Union Spirit? among all groups in the country towards overcoming
supercial differences. State policies are designed—among other things—to emphasise a
myth of common descent of all ?national races?; construct a unifying national culture, and
concentrate administrative power at the centre.
Both Karen identity and the Union of Myanmar are products of the same historical and
social conditions. Both appeal to a supposed unity, but in other characteristics differ. State
discourses suggest accommodation, but are directed towards social control. Karen identity
is born of primordial statements but is manifest in structural opposition to the state.
Ultimately, while the state seeks to assimilate all, Karen nationalists aim towards the
assimilation of their own and separation from others."
Source/publisher:
Asian Ethnicity, Volume 3, Number 2, September 2002
Date of Publication:
2002-00-00
Date of entry:
2014-08-18
Grouping:
- Individual Documents
Category:
Language:
English
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Format:
pdf
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660.96 KB