Executive Summary: "As a result of decades of ongoing civil war, large areas of Myanmar remain outside government rule, or are subject to mixed control and governance by the government and an array of ethnic armed actors (EAAs). These included ethnic armed organizations (EAOs), with ceasefires or in conflict with the state, as well as state-backed ethnic paramilitary organizations, such as the Border Guard Forces (BGFs) and People?s Militia Forces (PMFs). Despite this seeming recipe for chaos, there is a startling level of order in most of these areas. This order has been created in large part through customary justice mechanisms at the community level, and as a result of justice systems administered by EAAs, and in some cases by ethnic paramilitary organizations. In EAO-controlled areas, their justice systems are often the only formal structures present, while in mixed-control areas, government and EAA justice systems exist separately, but side by side. The village, and village-based justice mechanisms, are the glue that provides stability and order for most civilians in these areas. Often reliant on a long tradition of customary law and practices, village heads and village justice committees handle civil disputes and petty crimes ? the bulk of justice issues in these areas. EAAs have built their justice systems on top of the village structures, relying on them to handle most justice issues, while requiring more serious crimes to be handled in EAO courts, which are also available for appeals from the village level. On paper, at least, EAA justice systems are hierarchical, allowing for referral up the chain from village tract to township to district to the center. These structures, often backed by official procedures, also provide for the assignment of progressively more serious cases and progressively more severe punishments at each level. Judicial procedures differ between organizations, with some following a more formal model while other systems are more rudimentary. In practice, there may be variation from established procedures due to the ebb and flow of conflict, the capacity of an organization in a given area, or the personal connections of an individual to members of an EAA. Internal security for most EAOs is provided by their regular soldiers and militia they establish at the local level. These formations commonly function as arresting agencies as well as jailers. A few EAOs have established police forces dedicated to preserving public order among the populace. Criminal investigations are usually conducted by EAO administrative authorities, except in the case of the Karen National Union (KNU), which has a police force authorized for this. Village customary justice and EAA justice structures have continued to maintain order in EAA areas through periods of conflict and ceasefire. Without the EAA justice systems and the stabilizing effect of village customary justice structures, this order and stability would have been far less likely. 1 In many areas of Myanmar where EAAs operate, the central government has only ever had tenuous control, if any control at all. The ability of EAOs to maintain order and a degree of justice in turn contributes to their legitimacy among the population they claim to represent in areas they control, in mixed-control areas, and often to some degree in government-control areas adjacent to conflict zones where members of the group?s ethnic base also reside. The rule of law and the workings of Myanmar?s justice system are receiving increasing attention, while the role and structure of EAO justice systems and village justice remain relatively little studied or understood. The continuity and stability of village justice systems provide the bedrock on which official justice systems ? the government?s and the EAOs? ? are built, and thus are important to maintaining order and stability across the country. The fact that EAO justice systems operate in parallel with that of the government in large areas of the country, and provide the only means of justice for large portions of the population, should indicate their importance for the peace process as well as for the future governance of Myanmar"