The Kachin Independence Army (KIA; Kachin: ShangLawt Hpyen; Burmese: ကချင်လွတ်လပ်ရေးတပ်မတော်) is a non-state armed group and the military wing of the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO), a political group of ethnic Kachins in Northern Myanmar (formerly Burma). The Kachins are a coalition of six tribes whose homeland encompasses territory in China's Yunnan, Northeast India and Kachin State in Myanmar. The Kachin Independence Army is funded by the KIO, which raises money through regional taxes and trade in jade, timber and gold. It is armed with a combination of AK-47s, locally-made rifles (such as KA) and some artillery. Kachin Independence Army headquarters are in Laiza, in southern Kachin State near the Chinese border. In 2009, Thomas Fuller of the New York Times estimated the number of active KIA soldiers at about 4,000. They are divided into five brigades and one mobile brigade. Most are stationed in bases near the Chinese border, in KIO-held strips of territory. In October 2010, KIA commanders said that they had "16,000 regular troops and 10,000 reservists". In May 2012, the group had about 8,000 troops. The Kachin Independence Army members are mostly militants.
