THE YOUTHFUL FACES OF BURMESE RESISTANCE TO MILITARY JUNTA
Luther Htoo, (left) and Johnny Htoo, Wednesday, January 17th, 2001

SUAN PHUNG, Thailand/Burma Border - The two twin teenage Karen guerrilla leaders, Luther and Johnny Htoo have surrendered to Thai forces and are currently in custody after being captured on the Thai side of the border on Tuesday.

The thirteen year old twin boys achieved noteriety after their rebel group known as "God's Army" which split from the Karen National Union, was involved in hostage standoff in a Thai hospital in January, 2000. On that occassion all ten rebels were killed by Thai special forces resulting in several hundred hostages being freed.

They surrendered along with twelve other members, a woman, an adolescent boy as well as ten other children. The group had been pursued by Thai forces since New Year's Eve, when five members of the group held up a grocery store in Thailand. The Thai prime minister, Chuan Leekpai vowed to track down and punish the Burmese rebel group, saying that:

"They will not be allowed to just walk free - we will implement decisive justice when we find them"

However the twins who are in a poor state of health will be reunited with their parents in the Ban Tong-Yang refugee camp. "God's Army" as an organisation is believed to be finished although there may be isolated remnants left in the jungles of Burma.

Burma has been torn by civil war since independence from Britain in 1948. There are currently at least a dozen resistance armies in Burma, some fighting for independence for the various ethnic minorities in Burma, and others fighting for the overthrow of Burma's military junta which took power after Aung San Suu Kyi won democratic elections in 1990, the Burmese military junta has one of the worst human rights records in the world and continues to thumb its nose at the rest of the world.

 http://www.fas.org/irp/world/para/gods_army.htm