A Shan soldier stands guard outside the group's headquarters ahead of the Shan National Day in Loi Tai Leng earlier this year (AFP Photo/KC Ortiz)
Myanmar’s ethnic armed groups have called for a constitutionally-mandated federal union that would guarantee equality and the right to self determination.
In a 12-point statement released on Wednesday evening at the end of a six-day summit in Panghsang, the self-administered zone of Wa special region in northern Shan state, the groups called on the government to end military offensives in ethnic areas — especially in Kachin, Palaung, Kokang and Rakhine areas.
The groups say they will sign a draft nationwide ceasefire agreement only if the constitution is amended as per their recommendations.
“Only if the government agrees to amend the constitution, bringing democracy, racial equality and the right of self-determination, can we stay together in a federal union,” the ethnic leaders said in their statement.
Heavy fighting between Myanmar’s military and Kokang rebels in northern Shan state near the China border has undermined the peace process and sent thousands of people fleeing into China and central Myanmar.
Ethnic leaders have also called for the inclusion of groups not currently included in the ceasefire pact.
The government has refused to include the ethnic groups of Kokang, Paluang and Arakan in the peace talks in spite of the fact that they are members of the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT) and has put the pressure on ethnic groups to exclude the trio.
The three groups threatened to resign from the NCCT during the ethnic summit due to military offensives still ongoing in their regions.
Col Khun Okker, a leader of Pa-Oh National Liberation Organization (PNLO) who attended the ethnic submit said that they want to include all ethnic groups for signing the nationwide ceasefire agreement.
“If the government and military has a genuine willingness for peace, they need to end military offensive[s] in ethnic areas and [begin] striving for peace through political means. It is not possible for [a] nationwide ceasefire pact if the military continues to fight with some ethnic groups,” Khun Okker, who is also joint general secretary of the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC), told ucanews.com on Thursday.
He added that all ethnic groups are willing to end the fighting through peaceful negotiation and political means, though it is not clear if the government feels likewise.
Myanmar’s new quasi-civilian government is determined to sign a nationwide ceasefire agreement before the elections scheduled for later this year and the president told the public in a radio speech this month that the government is ready to finalize the NCA but is waiting for the outcome of the ethnic summit.
Hla Mg Shwe, a spokesperson’s from the government-affiliated Myanmar Peace Center (MPC), said it is unlikely the government could accede to all demands made during the summit.
“What I want to see is that if ethnic groups have a desire for federalism, they can discuss with the government and the military through smart ways instead of confrontation so that they may reach their goal. So both sides need to discuss more details patiently,” Hla Mg Shwe told ucanews.com on Thursday.
Ethnic armed groups have called for greater autonomy under federalism which is a barrier in peace talks as the military wants the centralized government set out by the 2008 controversial constitution.
Yan Myo Thein, a Yangon-based political analyst, said the demand could prove a key obstacle to a nationwide ceasefire pact and the peace process.
“If there is no amending of the constitution, it would be a barrier to a nationwide ceasefire pact, political dialogue and federal union which all ethnic groups have been calling for. Otherwise an all inclusive nationwide ceasefire agreement may not be possible,” Yan Myo Thein told ucanews.com on Thursday.
He added that if the government has a genuine desire to end fighting they need to amend the military-drafted constitution first.
