Tracking Genocide: Persecution of the Karen in Burma

Abstract

For sixty years a civil war has raged in the jungles of Burma. One of the lingering questions asked by human rights advocates and the international community is to what extent war crimes have been committed and whether the actions by the Burma Army amount to genocide. Based on significant data collected in the field over the past decade, this article argues that forced displacement of the Karen ethnic group does arise to the international standard of genocide. Tracking Genocide explores the theory and application of genocidal intent through the inference of a systematic plan to destroy an ethnic group or nationality.

Keywords: genocide, ethnic cleansing, burma, myanmar, displacement