SUMMARY
The All Burma Students’ Democratic Front (ABSDF) is a political and military group founded in November 1988, in the wake of large-scale pro-democracy protests, which were met by brute force by the Myanmar government. The group’s objectives include the restoration of democracy, human rights and the establishment of a federal state in Myanmar. Despite its predominantly ethnic majority Burman membership, the ABSDF has collaborated closely with ethnic minority opposition groups, in particular the Karen National Union (KNU) and the Democratic Kayin Buddhist Army (DKBA). The ABSDF was founded by groups associated with the All Burma Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU). It later became a founding member of the Democratic Alliance of Burma (DAB), a coalition of ethnic and democratic opposition groups under the leadership of Bo Mya of the KNU. In 1991 it split into two factions, which were subsequently reunited. Its first chairman was Htun Aung Gyaw. Since 2005, the group has been led by chairman U Than Khe.
In the mid-1980s, students at universities in Rangoon had begun to voice criticism against the authoritarian regime. A 1987 government campaign to combat inflation and a growing black market economy resulted in 60-80 percent of all money in circulation becoming worthless. This led to the first anti-government demonstrations in over a decade, held in September 1987 in Rangoon. In the spring of 1988, police subsequently killed 42 student demonstrators in Rangoon, which set off a wave of protests and calls for democracy throughout the country. In response, the police and military imposed curfews in major cities, closed down universities, and detained hundreds of protesters. During the turmoil, several thousand students left central Myanmar for the remote border regions. Building on Myanmar’s long history of student-led activism, in November 1988 groups associated with the ABFSU founded the ABSDF in land close to the Thai border held by the KNU. In 1990 the ABSDF is estimated to have had some 5 000 ‘student soldiers’ rising to some 10 000 at its height. The group cooperated closely with the Karen rebels, who provided the ABSDF with weapons and other support. In addition to its armed activities, the ABSDF has been active in providing local social services, fostering domestic activism and disseminating information about the political situation in Myanmar abroad.
In 2010, Myanmar’s military-led government held the first elections since 1990. The main democratic opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), led by Aung San Suu Kyi, boycotted the elections claiming the electoral laws (which did not permit Aung San Suu Kyi and other party members to run) were unfair. Objecting similarly to the political process, the ABSDF announced it would renew its armed struggle against the government together with the Karen rebel group [DKBA]/#actor/785, a break-away faction from KNU. Following the elections, a new partially-civilian government led by President Thein Sein took office and began a process of democratization. After the government revised the electoral laws, the NLD re-registered as a political party and won 2012 parliamentary by-elections in a landslide. The ABSDF turned its focus from armed opposition towards political dialogue with a view to establishing a federal democratic state.
