Rohingya Liberation Party

(Redirected from Rohingya Liberation Army)

The Rohingya Liberation Party (RLP) was a Rohingya political organization in Rakhine State, Myanmar (formerly Arakan, Burma). It had an armed wing called the Rohingya Liberation Army, which was led by a former mujahideen leader named Zaffar Kawal.[1]

Rohingya Liberation Party
LeadersZaffar Kawal[1]
Abdul Latif
Muhammad Jafar Habib[2]
Dates of operation1972 (1972)–1974 (1974)
HeadquartersButhidaung
Active regionsRakhine State
IdeologyRohingya nationalism
Islamism
Size800–2,500[1]
Opponents Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma
Battles and warsInternal conflict in Myanmar
Preceded by
Mujahideen

History

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On 15 July 1972, mujahideen leader Zaffar Kawal founded the Rohingya Liberation Party after mobilising various mujahideen factions under his command. Zaffar appointed himself Chairman of the party, Abdul Latif as Vice Chairman and Minister of Military Affairs, and Muhammad Jafar Habib as the Secretary General, a graduate from the University of Yangon. Their strength increased from 200 fighters in the beginning to up to 2,500 by 1974. The RLP was largely based in the jungles of Buthidaung. After a massive military operation by the Tatmadaw (Myanmar Armed Forces) in July 1974, Zaffar and most of his men fled across the border into Bangladesh.[1]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d Pho Kan Kaung (May 1992). The Danger of Rohingya. Myet Khin Thit Magazine No. 25. pp. 87–103.
  2. ^ Smith, Martin (1991). Burma: Insurgency and the politics of ethnicity (1st ed.). London and New Jersey: Zed Books. p. 219. ISBN 0862328683.