Rise and Fall of God's Army
By Maxmilian Wechsler
Ratchaburi, Czech Press
November 15, 2000
After almost three years of armed resistance against the SPDC the exhausted and desperate remnants of the God's Army had no choice but to surrender to the 4th brigade of the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA).
The group gave up in October 2000 and consisted of 22 mainly teenage soldiers, including the legendary twin teenage leaders, Johnny Htoo and his elder brother Luther.
All God's army soldiers will receive all necessary assistance from the 4th brigade of KNLA and they will be gradually incorporated into the KNLA structure and participate in the operation against the SPDC.
A small remaining group of 8 God's Army soldiers who refused to join the KNLA currently facing an uncertain future, abandoned in the jungles of Tenasserim Division. The group is led by Dah Moo. The KNLA will continue to persuade them to give up.
The God's Army was formed on 3 March 1997 at Htaw Ma Pyo after over 200 deeply religious Karen Christian families abandoned villages they lived for centuries and fled to Thailand in February 1997.
The twin brothers, 8 years old at that time had a vision from the God who command them to lead their people against the SPDC. Both saw with their own eyes the looting and harassment committed by the advancing SPDC soldiers against their people and couldn't let it go on.
The formation of the God's Army was discussed with a high ranking official of the Karen National Union (KNU) who promised to assist them on every possible way sympathize with their plight. Unfortunately, the KNLA was unable to protect the Karen religious families from the SPDC troops.
The God's Army proved to be a formidable force from the beginning and their remarkable battlefield victories against the SPDC made them famous and feared force.
The God's Army had between 1997-1998 about 200 young soldiers, 100 armed.. They were supervised by battle hardened and experienced KNLA officers who were sometimes frustrated because the God's Army followed orders of the twin brothers instead.
The God's Army inflicted heavy casualty upon the SPDC troops and rarely suffered death or injury. This phenomenon led the Karen people to believe the twin brothers really possessing a supernatural powers. The rumors about their powers also reach the SPDC soldiers who attempted to avoid encounter with the God's Army fearing of their mysterious powers.
In reality, the early successes of the God 's Army against the SPDC can be attributed to their determination, bravery and knowledge of the terrain.
The God's Army engaged in average 10 battles a week with the SPDC troops between 1997-1998 inflicting a heavy casualties on them. In one battle the God's Army killed 23 enemy soldiers without losing a single man.
As the news of the God 's Army brave deeds spread around the world a financial aid started to coming in from abroad, especially from the South Korean and Japanese NGOs. The Koreans gave money to build a church for the God's Army at Takolan, Suan Phung district of Ratchaburi province .
In the height of the God's Army successes in early 1999 some opportunists within the God's Army and the Karen Solidarity Organization (KSO) attempted to wrestle the control over the group and from this moment the fortune of the God's Army started to decline. The internal squabbling led to the sharp reduction in the combat readiness and effectiveness.
A founding member of the God's Army and KSO executive Saw Toe Toe guided 12 Vigorous Burmese Student Warriors (VBSW) to the God's Army camp in early September 1999. The VBSW took the full advantage of the God's Army innocence and naivety convincing that they will be better off by joining in the future operations.
Unfortunately, the God's Army swallowed the bait because of some greedy people who among them controlled Johnny Htoo and Luther.
Instead of focusing their military efforts against the SPDC, the VBSW attacked two targets inside Thailand: The Burmese embassy in Bangkok and the Ratchaburi hospital. The God's Army blindly participated. Both events had a catastrophic consequence for both groups because they made Thailand the second enemy.
Because of disagreements within the God's Army leadership the acting commander Shwe Bya left in March 2000 and formed the Democratic God's Army (DGA). He was joined by his close associate Kyaw Ni a.k.a. Johnny who played a major part in the seizure of the Burmese embassy in Bangkok. Instead of fighting the SPDC, the DGA concentrated to make money by kidnappings and extortion.
Soe Toe Toe was more lucky than his colleagues. He and his family were granted a refugee status in the United States.
Unfortunately, most of Saw Toe Toe's Karen countrymen weren't so lucky. Around 418 God's Army soldiers and relatives crossed to Thailand from Burma between 2-3 February, 2000, after the SPDC mounted an offensive against them. They ended at refugee camp in Thailand.
The Thai authorities also retaliated against the God's Army evicting some of their relatives from Takolan and detaining them at refugee camp in Sangkhlaburi.
Rumors spread Sangkhlaburi during March 2000 connecting the Thai forces to the alleged disappearance of 44 God's Army men. A high level inquiry was ordered by the Thai government after a complaint was lodged by the Thai NGO. An exhaustive investigation conducted by the top Thai government officials, which went on for several months, completely cleared the Thai security authorities from any complicity as no evidence of any wrong doings was discovered.
After the Ratchaburi hospital fiasco, the faith of the God's Army was sealed as all sponsors abandoned them, including the 4th brigade of KNLA who tried desperately and unsuccessfully to convince their leaders and the twins not to believe the VBSW promises and instead to listen to their Karen brothers in the KNLA.
In the middle of 2000, the 4th brigade of KNLA decided to give a humanitarian food aid to the suffering God's Army soldiers and their families pleading them again to give up and join the KNLA.
Finally, the God's Army agreed to give up for the good of themselves and the entire opposition movement.