Anglo-Chin War

   (1917-1919)

   A major event in the history of Burma's Chins, sparked by the refusal of many young Chin men, especially those belonging to tribes living around Haka (Hakha), to obey British orders to make themselves available for combat and non-combat service in connection with World War I. At the time, as many as one million men from India and Burma were serving in France and Middle Eastern combat zones. A major reason for the Chins' rebellion was their belief that once separated from their land, they would not be protected by their local guardian deities (Khuahrum). Following the rebels' unsuccessful attempt to capture Haka, British forces carried out systematic and sometimes brutal pacification of villages in the rebel areas, which in many ways resembled the "Four Cuts" policy of the Tatmadaw. In 1919, when the rebellion was suppressed, rebel leaders were tried, imprisoned, and in three cases, sentenced to death. However, the Anglo-Chin War marked an important turning point in relations between the Chins and the colonial government: To gain local support, the British recognized the authority of the traditional Ram-uk (chiefs), which had been nullified by the 1896 Chin Hills Regulations; recruited Chins to serve in the colonial army; and made schools established by Christian missionaries part of the colonial education system. These changes, coupled with the influence of thousands of young Chins who did serve in Europe, resulted in a social transformation of East Chinram, including a rapid increase in converts to Christianity. During World War II, Chin soldiers played a major role in British campaigns against the Japanese.

   See also Stevenson, Henry Noel Cochrane