In 1940, Japan's interest in raw material bases and human resources base grew in Southeast Asia. The British provided supplies to the Chinese National Army, which resisted the Japanese, while supplies were provided from the port of Rangoon in Burma, and through this country, supplies went to southern China to Chinese National Army fighters. Japan was interested in crossing this supply route.
In 1940, Colonel Suzuki Keiji, a staff officer of the Imperial General Staff, was tasked with drawing up plans for covert operations in Burma, which was a British colony at the time.
The Japanese knew very little about the Burma and had very little contact with the colony. In 1939, he was contacted by the Japanese intelligence service Bo Maw and he subsequently consulted the possibility of Japanese support with his ally Aung Sanom from the Free Block.
Suzuki secretly visits Burma in September 1940. Here he meets with political leaders Thakin Kodaw Hmaing and Thakin Mya.
Minami Kikan and Thirty Friends
However, an important person is acquired by the Japanese in 1940, when an arrest warrant was issued for a former student activist Aung Sana who flees from India to China, where he is detained in Amoy and in August 1940 Suzuki convinced to cooperate.
Suzuki and Aung San letia do Tokya. After talking to the Imperial General Staff, it is decided to create a secret intelligence organization called Minami Kikan (& # 21335; & # 27231; & # 38306;) (under Suzuki's command), which should support the Burmese resistance groups and close Burma Road. to China.
To achieve this, young fighters for Burma's independence should be recruited and subsequently trained in Thailand or in the Japanese-occupied territories of China. Aung San and the first group of revolutionaries, referred to as Thirty Friends [* 1 *] (& # 4123; & # 4146; & # 4120; & # 4140; & # 4154; & # 4126; & # 4143; & # 4150; & # 4152; & # 4096; & # 4155; & # 4141; & # 4117;) is trained on Hainan Island (now China), later on Formosa. Thirty comrades actually created the germ of the Burmese army. Their average age was only 24 years.
Another of the first recruits was Bo Ne Win. Thakin Tun Oke was elected political administrator and organizer when the group entered Burma. Suzuki adopts the Burmese name "Bo Mo Gyo" for his collaboration with Minami Kikan.
Minami Kikan was created in February 1941.
Burm Independent Army
On December 28, 1941, Minami Kikan is inaugurated at a ceremony in Bangkok and immediately forms the Burma Independent Army ( Burma Independence Army, BIA) .
The BIA initially counts 227 Burmese and 74 Japanese. Some of the Burmese soldiers were of the second generation living in Thailand and who did not even speak Burmese.
The BIA creates and prepares small units to take part in the invasion of Burma in January 1942. Initially, the units initially perform intelligence tasks, gather information, continue sabotage and actually serve as a vanguard of invading troops, especially in southern Burma and the Tenasserium.. The BIA also attacked retreating British troops and forced them to fight during the retreat. One of Thakin Shu Maung's thirty friends (Ne Win) infiltrates Rangoon where he performs sabotage operations.
As Japanese forces enter Burma, many volunteers from the newly conquered territories join the BIA. Col. Suzuki, responsible for the BIA from the Japanese side, achieved the desired political effect and a number of Burmese began to report to the BIA.
March 8, 1942 Japanese forces occupy Rangoon, the BIA numbers 12,000 men and according to some figures up to 18,000.
Many of the BIA members were not in fact drafted, but many times they were individuals or gangs who volunteered for the BIA to justify them and avoid responsibility for their previous actions.
The Japanese provided BIA armament, but BIA members armed themselves, among other things, from the abandoned armament left by British troops in the retreat.
During the Japanese occupation of Burma, the BIA supports the actions of the imperial army, but their operations are more or less ineffective and the BIA suffers considerable losses, mainly due to ignorance of modern struggle, inexperience and unnecessary enthusiasm and overestimation of its own forces.
BIA terror in Burma
Some BIA troops are actively involved in attacks on some of Burma's minorities (especially the Karens) and looting of Indian refugees. The BIA had worse access to minorities than the Japanese themselves. Shortly after the British withdrew from Burma in early 1942, BIA units besieged Karen civilians in the Irrawaddy Delta and Papun districts, killing hundreds of them daily, accusing them of being British spies. The inhabitants of Karen endured, a resistance movement arose between them, which cooperated with the British. This was not the end of the Japanese, who stopped the BIA's operations in the area on the grounds that the killings were against their target and harmed more than they served. These actions cannot be attributed to unorganized recruits, the authors organized the BIA, and its command could end this, but it did not.
In addition to disputes over excessive brutality against the civilian population, another problem between the BIA and the Japanese administration was that the BIA sought to form local governments in various parts of Burma. The Japanese administration was interested in creating its own administration according to its own ideas. The first conflict was the Moulmein administration. Japan's 55th Division rejected Burma's demand for a city administration and even banned the BIA from entering the city.
Burmese Defense Army
After operations conducted in the spring of 1942, the BIA was disbanded and disarmed by the Japanese. Subsequently, in August 1942, the Japanese formed the Burma Defense Army (BDA), along with the puppet's civilian executive power. This new force, numbering 3,000 men and was trained by Japanese advisers, as required by the Japanese army as regular army battalions.
Burm National Army
In August 1943, Burma gained formal independence. Ba Maw, a politician who was imprisoned by the British before the war, becomes prime minister. Aung San becomes Minister of Defense and at the same time Commander-in-Chief of the Arad, which after the appointment of the government is named as Burma National Army ( Burma National Army - BNA) Col. becomes the commander of the army. Bo Ne Win. The Foreign Minister is Thakin Nu.
The BNA consisted of 7 infantry battalions and various support bodies, with a number of 11,000 men. Most of the members were of Burmese nationality, but there was also one Karen battalion. The BNA took part in the fighting during 1944.
Although Burma was formally independent during this period, it still remained under Japanese military occupation. The Japanese administration plundered the local economy for its military needs, and this as well as the behavior of the Japanese occupiers turned the majority of the population against them. The Japanese behaved supremely in the occupied territories, even in relation to the BNA, which showed, for example, that members of the BNA had to treat ordinary Japanese soldiers as their superiors.
In March 1944, the BNA did not take part in the offensive in Imphale, unlike the Indian National Army, which fights alongside Japanese troops. After the failure of the offensive, the Japanese begin to retreat.
During 1943 and 1944, the BNA established contacts with other political groups in Burma, including the Communists. The People's Anti-Fascist Front ( Anti-Fascist Organization (AFO)) is created and is headed by Thakin Soe, the founder of the Communist Party.
Through the Communists and the Arakan Defense Army ( Arakan Defense Army), contact is made with British Force 136 ( Force 136) in India. Initially, these are indirect contacts.Forces 136 were able to contact the BNA Karen unit in Rangoon through agents who were deployed in Karen.
In December 1944, the AFO established links with the Allies and proposed to carry out an uprising against the Japanese, while intending to include the BNA. The British initially do not trust the BNA and do not see the situation in such a way that it would be appropriate to support this collaborating body, which at the beginning of the war marched against the British alongside Japanese forces. The British reservations concern, among other things, the BNA Commander, Aung Sana, who is considered a criminal and also for his personal presence in some civilian killings.
The first BNA uprising took place in early 1945 in central Burma. Gradually, the rest of the BNA joined it at the end of March 1945. March 27, 1945 BNA formally declares war on Japan.
At that time, the BNA was deployed throughout the territory and was subject to various regional military commanders. Troops near the British lines or near the Irrawaddy River received weapons from Allied troops in the area. The army also occupies important offices in most cities.
Forces 136 15.5.1945 ensured a safe passage Aung San so that he could meet Gen. pore. William Slim, commanding the 14th British Army in Burma.
Thakin Soe and Aung San hoped that the BNA would be accepted as an allied force and the AFO would recognized as the Interim Government of Burma. At the meeting, Slim refuses to recognize the AFO as an interim government and demands the disarmament of the BNA, after the fighting has stopped. The AFO agrees that the BNA will be incorporated into the new Burmese army.
Patriotic Burmese Forces
The BNA is renamed the Patriotic Burmese Forces (PBF) following the uprising, and they work with the Allies to liberate Burma and oust the Japanese.
The BNA, for example, are helping to cover the wing of Messervy's 4th Corps in advance on Rangoon, but they no longer played an important role in the final battles in Burma.
The AFPFL (political successor to the AFO) has joined the Burma civilian government in part. The patriotic Burmese forces are disarmed as their combat operations end, and most of their personnel gradually move to the new 3 new battalions of the Burmese army. The second part of the former fighters is included in Aung San's paramilitary air defense.
source
Bayly, Christopher; Tim Harper (2005). Forgotten Armies. London
Allen, Louis (1984). Burma: The Longest War 1941-45
In 1940, Colonel Suzuki Keiji, a staff officer of the Imperial General Staff, was tasked with drawing up plans for covert operations in Burma, which was a British colony at the time.
The Japanese knew very little about the Burma and had very little contact with the colony. In 1939, he was contacted by the Japanese intelligence service Bo Maw and he subsequently consulted the possibility of Japanese support with his ally Aung Sanom from the Free Block.
Suzuki secretly visits Burma in September 1940. Here he meets with political leaders Thakin Kodaw Hmaing and Thakin Mya.
Minami Kikan and Thirty Friends
However, an important person is acquired by the Japanese in 1940, when an arrest warrant was issued for a former student activist Aung Sana who flees from India to China, where he is detained in Amoy and in August 1940 Suzuki convinced to cooperate.
Suzuki and Aung San letia do Tokya. After talking to the Imperial General Staff, it is decided to create a secret intelligence organization called Minami Kikan (& # 21335; & # 27231; & # 38306;) (under Suzuki's command), which should support the Burmese resistance groups and close Burma Road. to China.
To achieve this, young fighters for Burma's independence should be recruited and subsequently trained in Thailand or in the Japanese-occupied territories of China. Aung San and the first group of revolutionaries, referred to as Thirty Friends [* 1 *] (& # 4123; & # 4146; & # 4120; & # 4140; & # 4154; & # 4126; & # 4143; & # 4150; & # 4152; & # 4096; & # 4155; & # 4141; & # 4117;) is trained on Hainan Island (now China), later on Formosa. Thirty comrades actually created the germ of the Burmese army. Their average age was only 24 years.
Another of the first recruits was Bo Ne Win. Thakin Tun Oke was elected political administrator and organizer when the group entered Burma. Suzuki adopts the Burmese name "Bo Mo Gyo" for his collaboration with Minami Kikan.
Minami Kikan was created in February 1941.
Burm Independent Army
On December 28, 1941, Minami Kikan is inaugurated at a ceremony in Bangkok and immediately forms the Burma Independent Army ( Burma Independence Army, BIA) .
The BIA initially counts 227 Burmese and 74 Japanese. Some of the Burmese soldiers were of the second generation living in Thailand and who did not even speak Burmese.
The BIA creates and prepares small units to take part in the invasion of Burma in January 1942. Initially, the units initially perform intelligence tasks, gather information, continue sabotage and actually serve as a vanguard of invading troops, especially in southern Burma and the Tenasserium.. The BIA also attacked retreating British troops and forced them to fight during the retreat. One of Thakin Shu Maung's thirty friends (Ne Win) infiltrates Rangoon where he performs sabotage operations.
As Japanese forces enter Burma, many volunteers from the newly conquered territories join the BIA. Col. Suzuki, responsible for the BIA from the Japanese side, achieved the desired political effect and a number of Burmese began to report to the BIA.
March 8, 1942 Japanese forces occupy Rangoon, the BIA numbers 12,000 men and according to some figures up to 18,000.
Many of the BIA members were not in fact drafted, but many times they were individuals or gangs who volunteered for the BIA to justify them and avoid responsibility for their previous actions.
The Japanese provided BIA armament, but BIA members armed themselves, among other things, from the abandoned armament left by British troops in the retreat.
During the Japanese occupation of Burma, the BIA supports the actions of the imperial army, but their operations are more or less ineffective and the BIA suffers considerable losses, mainly due to ignorance of modern struggle, inexperience and unnecessary enthusiasm and overestimation of its own forces.
BIA terror in Burma
Some BIA troops are actively involved in attacks on some of Burma's minorities (especially the Karens) and looting of Indian refugees. The BIA had worse access to minorities than the Japanese themselves. Shortly after the British withdrew from Burma in early 1942, BIA units besieged Karen civilians in the Irrawaddy Delta and Papun districts, killing hundreds of them daily, accusing them of being British spies. The inhabitants of Karen endured, a resistance movement arose between them, which cooperated with the British. This was not the end of the Japanese, who stopped the BIA's operations in the area on the grounds that the killings were against their target and harmed more than they served. These actions cannot be attributed to unorganized recruits, the authors organized the BIA, and its command could end this, but it did not.
In addition to disputes over excessive brutality against the civilian population, another problem between the BIA and the Japanese administration was that the BIA sought to form local governments in various parts of Burma. The Japanese administration was interested in creating its own administration according to its own ideas. The first conflict was the Moulmein administration. Japan's 55th Division rejected Burma's demand for a city administration and even banned the BIA from entering the city.
Burmese Defense Army
After operations conducted in the spring of 1942, the BIA was disbanded and disarmed by the Japanese. Subsequently, in August 1942, the Japanese formed the Burma Defense Army (BDA), along with the puppet's civilian executive power. This new force, numbering 3,000 men and was trained by Japanese advisers, as required by the Japanese army as regular army battalions.
Burm National Army
In August 1943, Burma gained formal independence. Ba Maw, a politician who was imprisoned by the British before the war, becomes prime minister. Aung San becomes Minister of Defense and at the same time Commander-in-Chief of the Arad, which after the appointment of the government is named as Burma National Army ( Burma National Army - BNA) Col. becomes the commander of the army. Bo Ne Win. The Foreign Minister is Thakin Nu.
The BNA consisted of 7 infantry battalions and various support bodies, with a number of 11,000 men. Most of the members were of Burmese nationality, but there was also one Karen battalion. The BNA took part in the fighting during 1944.
Although Burma was formally independent during this period, it still remained under Japanese military occupation. The Japanese administration plundered the local economy for its military needs, and this as well as the behavior of the Japanese occupiers turned the majority of the population against them. The Japanese behaved supremely in the occupied territories, even in relation to the BNA, which showed, for example, that members of the BNA had to treat ordinary Japanese soldiers as their superiors.
In March 1944, the BNA did not take part in the offensive in Imphale, unlike the Indian National Army, which fights alongside Japanese troops. After the failure of the offensive, the Japanese begin to retreat.
During 1943 and 1944, the BNA established contacts with other political groups in Burma, including the Communists. The People's Anti-Fascist Front ( Anti-Fascist Organization (AFO)) is created and is headed by Thakin Soe, the founder of the Communist Party.
Through the Communists and the Arakan Defense Army ( Arakan Defense Army), contact is made with British Force 136 ( Force 136) in India. Initially, these are indirect contacts.Forces 136 were able to contact the BNA Karen unit in Rangoon through agents who were deployed in Karen.
In December 1944, the AFO established links with the Allies and proposed to carry out an uprising against the Japanese, while intending to include the BNA. The British initially do not trust the BNA and do not see the situation in such a way that it would be appropriate to support this collaborating body, which at the beginning of the war marched against the British alongside Japanese forces. The British reservations concern, among other things, the BNA Commander, Aung Sana, who is considered a criminal and also for his personal presence in some civilian killings.
The first BNA uprising took place in early 1945 in central Burma. Gradually, the rest of the BNA joined it at the end of March 1945. March 27, 1945 BNA formally declares war on Japan.
At that time, the BNA was deployed throughout the territory and was subject to various regional military commanders. Troops near the British lines or near the Irrawaddy River received weapons from Allied troops in the area. The army also occupies important offices in most cities.
Forces 136 15.5.1945 ensured a safe passage Aung San so that he could meet Gen. pore. William Slim, commanding the 14th British Army in Burma.
Thakin Soe and Aung San hoped that the BNA would be accepted as an allied force and the AFO would recognized as the Interim Government of Burma. At the meeting, Slim refuses to recognize the AFO as an interim government and demands the disarmament of the BNA, after the fighting has stopped. The AFO agrees that the BNA will be incorporated into the new Burmese army.
Patriotic Burmese Forces
The BNA is renamed the Patriotic Burmese Forces (PBF) following the uprising, and they work with the Allies to liberate Burma and oust the Japanese.
The BNA, for example, are helping to cover the wing of Messervy's 4th Corps in advance on Rangoon, but they no longer played an important role in the final battles in Burma.
The AFPFL (political successor to the AFO) has joined the Burma civilian government in part. The patriotic Burmese forces are disarmed as their combat operations end, and most of their personnel gradually move to the new 3 new battalions of the Burmese army. The second part of the former fighters is included in Aung San's paramilitary air defense.
source
Bayly, Christopher; Tim Harper (2005). Forgotten Armies. London
Allen, Louis (1984). Burma: The Longest War 1941-45