Myanmar gov't, ethnic groups set to resume ceasefire talks in Yangon

by Feng Yingqiu

YANGON, July 17 (Xinhua) -- Negotiators of Myanmar government and ethnic armed groups have been set to resume their formal talks at the Myanmar Peace Center in Yangon next Wednesday on seeking formal signing of a draft nationwide ceasefire accord (NCA).

The two-day fresh talks will be a follow-up of an informal one held in Chiangmai on July 2-3 between the government's Myanmar Peace Center and ethnic armed organization's senior delegation.

The 8th round of ceasefire talks between the government's Union Peace-Making Work Committee (UPWC) and the ethnic armed group's senior delegation is expected to focus on finalization of the NCA, all-inclusive in the signing, the role of the signatories and matter of international witnesses as outlined in the Chiangmai talks.

In the Chiangmai talks, the government side proposed signing of the NCA with 15 armed groups first and the others to be followed later.

In the upcoming Wednesday's resumed talks, the government delegation will be led by its Vice Chairman and Minister at the President's Office U Aung Min, while the EAO's senior delegation be headed by Naw Zipporah Sein, Vice Chairman of Karen National Union (KNU).

Invitations are being extended to the United Nations Special Envoy and the Special Envoy of China on Asian Affairs to attend the resumed talks as observers.

Government negotiator of the Myanmar Peace Center U Hla Maung Shwe disclosed that there will be negotiation also on a set of amendment to the draft NCA by the ethnic side.

The 15-member ethnic new negotiator was formed at the last ethnic summit conference in Law Khee Lar, Kayin state, held on June 9 and was assigned to further deal with the government.

That ethnic summit rejected the signing of the NCA until further amendment, insisting that all armed groups be included in the signing process.

The draft NCA was preliminarily signed between the government's Union Peace-Making Work Committee (UPWC) and the ethnic groups' Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT) at the end of March after conclusion of more than one year's negotiation on the NCA.

The government on its part has indicated readiness to complete the formal signing over the draft NCA as soon as possible once it is adopted by top leadership of the ethnic side.

According to the draft NCA, the formal NCA signing by leaders of both sides is to be further forwarded to the parliament for approval and a framework for political dialogue is also to be drawn within two months with the dialogue to take place within three months.

The peace process began in November 2013 when UPWC and NCCT met in Myitgyina, Kachin state's capital, for the very first time for the nationwide ceasefire talks, while the last 7th round of talks took place in Yangon in March.

http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/article_xinhua.aspx?id=293072

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Political parties, armed movements begin fusion of framework drafts

Since 16 May, representatives from political parties and armed movements have been holding brainstorming sessions to combine their drafts of framework for political dialogue (FPD).

General Mutu Saypoe, President, Karen National Union, opening the forum, Inya Lake, 9 May 2015. (Photo:KNDO)

They include those from the National League for Democracy (NLD), United Nationalities Alliance (UNA), “56 parties”, the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT), Karen National Union (KNU) and the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS).

All have agreed that waiting for the signing of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA), that was agreed on the March by the drafters from both the government and the ethnic armed organizations (EAOs), would consume a lot of time that they can ill afford.

According to the draft NCA, the Framework for Political Dialogue (FPD) would be negotiated and agreed upon within 60 days after the signing of the NCA, followed by the launching of the Political Dialogue (PD) within the next 30 days.

“We now have only 3 months remain before the election campaigns begin in September,” a participant of the informal brainstorming sessions said. “So if we are going to wait until the NCA is signed to begin the FPD process, it is more than likely we may not be able to finish in 2 months time. What we are trying to do is to combine all the FPD drafts available in order to present them in a single text to the NCA signatories.”

So far there are 4 known FPD drafts prepared by the NLD, UNA, “56” parties and the NCCT.

The ongoing FPD sessions are the result of the Peace and National Reconciliation Forum held at Inya Lake Hotel on 9 May, and participated by 152 representatives from the government, 7 EAOs, 64 political parties and civil society organizations. The co-hosts of the forum were the 4 EAOs and 55 political parties that had signed the Deed of Commitment (DoC) with the President, Union Parliament Speaker and 3 top military officers on the Union Day, 12 February.

“The DoC does not seek either overshadowing or annulment of the NCA,” the forum had declared “On the contrary, it is to strengthen and complement it.”

The DoC has promised to launch the political dialogue before the elections.

“From September to March 2016, after the new government is installed,” said a participant at the forum, “the peace process machine can be kept warmed up by the launch of the political dialogue. Then we won’t have to start it from scratch.”

Concern was expressed during the 15 May Economist Myanmar Summit that if the NCA was not signed before the elections, there would be no military code of conduct (CoC) for both belligerents to observe and no Joint Monitoring Committees (JMCs) to curb the ever-present danger of ceasefire violations by either side.

panglong.org

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Burma ceasefire agreement: One step forward, two steps back

Burmese army soldiers patrol a road in Kokang, northeastern Shan State. Pic: AP.

The signing of a nationwide ceasefire (NCA) in Burma (Myanmar) seems as distant as ever following the release of a 12 point statement issued by the participants of the ethnic armed organisations (EAO) leaders meeting.

The meeting, involving the senior leaders of 12 ethnic groups, was organised by the United Wa State Army (UWSA) and held at their headquarters in Pangsang, Eastern Shan State from May 1-6.

The Burmese military and government will have no problems with some of the points made in the statement.

These include: a promise from the ethnic groups that they will not secede from the union; a call for all inclusive political dialogue to include the government, parliament, the army, political parties, ethnic groups and civil society organisations (CSOs); and a call for all parties involved in the peace process to have mutual respect for each other because there is a need to build unity between Burmese and non-Burmese.

Other points are similar to clauses in ceasefire agreements made between individual ethnic groups and the government that the army have had no qualms about breaking.

These include: a call to reject the use of force to solve political problems and instead to use political, and the stopping of human rights violations in ethnic areas.

There are other points in the statement that the government and army will be be far less likely to accept. This could cause long delays to the ratification of the draft NCA that was signed on March 31 between the Union Peace-making Work Committee (UPWC) representing the government and the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT) representing ethnic groups.

Two points call for much the same thing; one calls for an end to the fighting in Northern Shan State and Kachin State, while the other statement calls for an end to fighting in Northern Burma. These areas include the Kokang area in Northern Shan State that has seen a lot of heavy fighting recently between the Burma Army and the Myanmar Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) or Kokang Group, and to a lesser extent the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and the Arakan Army (AA).

The Burma Army has a record of agreeing to such demands before signing a ceasefire before later breaking them with impunity. What makes it less likely that they will agree to these points this time is the call by the ethnic groupss for the ceasefire in Northern Burma to be monitored by U.N. and Chinese peacekeepers.

Another point that the government is likely to find unacceptable is that the constitution will have to be changed to guarantee ethnic rights, self-determination and a federal union before the NCA can be signed.

The government has been very resistant to changing the constitution despite pressure from many groups, including the U.S. government, ahead of elections later this year. The government has also previously said there is no need to formalise a federal union.

The statements the government and army are likely to have the biggest problems with are: all EAOs must have the right to sign the NCA even if they have not previously individually signed a ceasefire agreement with the government and that a group that includes representatives from all EAOs should be allowed to negotiate with the government and participate in political dialogue.

This is likely to cause problems because the government is adamant that it will not recognise the MNDAA or the AA, whilst the TNLA has not signed a ceasefire with the government.

The army’s animosity against these groups is so great that it was threatening to arrest their leaders as they travelled to the Pangsang conference, even though such an action could have ruined the conference. The army did not act on that threat, but the government did warn journalists that they could face prosecution for reporting on the conference if they were seen to be in contact with members of an illegal organisation.

Another point that the government will disapprove of is the support from all the conference participants for the formation of a Wa State.

The statement concludes that another conference of ethnic leaders will be held “at a convenient time”.

There was hope that the Pansang conference would move the NCA signing process forward, but it appears not to have really clarified anything or advanced the NCA signing process in any meaningful way.

As is so often the case with the peace process in Burma, it appears that it has gone one step forward whilst going two steps back.

The 12 points in the Statement from the participants at the EAO Leaders Conference in Pansang are:

1. We reject the use of force. Political problems have to be solved by political means.
2. All ceasefire groups and non-ceasefire groups must have the right to sign the NCA.
3. The fighting in Northern Shan State and Kachin State must stop because it causes distrust.
4. Human rights violations in ethnic areas must stop.
5. The constitution has to be amended to guarantee ethnic rights, self-determination and a federal union.
6. We will not secede from the union
7. Fighting in Northern Burma must stop and the U.N. and China must monitor the ceasefire.
8. There must be all-inclusive political dialogue that includes the government, parliament, the army, political parties, EAOs and civil society organisations.
9. We all live together in the union, so we should have mutual respect and help each other. We need to build unity between Burmese and non-Burmese.
10. A group that includes representatives of all EAO groups should negotiate with the government and participate in political dialogue.
11. Conference participants support the proposal for the formation of a Wa State.
12. The United Wa State Party/Army will organise another EAO leaders conference at a convenient time.

The author would like to thank Sai Leik of the Myanmar Peace Monitor for translating the statement points above from Burmese into English.

Copy Right Asiancorrespondent

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UNFC Confirms Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement Reached With Govt’s Negotiating Team is Draft Only – Needs Ethnic Leaders Approval First

The United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC) released a statement on 7 April, 2015, to make clear its position on the nationwide ceasefire agreement reached with the Burmese government on March 31.The UNFC statement pointed out that the document, its Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT) signed on March 31, 2015, “was not the signing of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA), but it was simply the signing of an approval reached on a draft agreement, between the NCCT and the [government’s] Union Peace-making Work Committee (UPWC).”

The UNFC said the approved draft of the nationwide ceasefire that the NCCT and UPWC agreed on had still to be approved by the ethnic leaders of the respective ceasefire groups. It is expected that the UNFC will hold a summit for its members to ratify, amend or reject the wording of the draft.

The UNFC said that the “approval of NCA draft, reached between the NCCT and UPWC is not the final accepted agreement, and the final signing shall be done only after continued discussions on some topics, and if there is the ‘required implementation’.”

The UNFC said that it would like to confirm that it “would consistently endeavor for the establishment of genuine peace and the federal union, and the resolution of various problems in the country, by peaceful means through negotiation.”

http://karennews.org/2015/04/unfc-confirms-nationwide-ceasefire-agreement-reached-with-govts-negotiating-team-is-draft-only-needs-ethnic-leaders-approval-first.html/

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Ethnic Alliance to Meet With Govt to Discuss Attack, Ceasefire

Government and military leaders (right) shake hands with ethnic leaders at the start of nationwide ceasefire talks in Rangoon in early April. (Photo: Hein Htet / The Irrawaddy)

RANGOON — A representative of an alliance of ethnic armed groups said they have agreed to hold a high-level meeting in Rangoon with Minister Aung Min next week in an effort to resume Burma’s stalled nationwide ceasefire process.

“We have a plan to meet … before Christmas. We did not yet set a date but we will meet in Yangon,” said Khun Okkar, a senior member of the National Ceasefire Coordination Team, which represents an alliance of 16 ethnic armed groups.

The meeting will be an important moment for the sides to assess if they can resolve the fallout of a Burma Army surprise attack on the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) on Nov. 19, when the military fired a number of artillery rounds into the grounds of a KIA training camp near Laiza where dozens of young cadets were exercising.

The attack injured more than a dozen cadets and killed 23, most of them from rebel groups allied to the KIA, such as the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and the Arakan Army.

The KIA subsequently cancelled its monthly meetings in Myitkyina with the Burma Army and alleged the army had not made an effort to properly explain the attack.

Khun Okkar said the NCCT expected answers over the attack from Aung Min and army representatives during the upcoming meeting, adding that the minister had only touched upon the incident in a recent letter to the NCCT.

“He gave some explanations in his letter, but not enough. We are not satisfied with his statement. Therefore, we decided to have a meeting as we wanted to talk more about this,” Khun Okkar said. “We will ask more questions and negotiate with them [about the nationwide ceasefire] at the meeting.”

Tensions in northern Burma have risen since the attack, and clashes between the army and Kachin, Palaung and Kokang rebels have become increasingly frequent. In recent months, the nationwide ceasefire process had already hit a deadlock as differences over key issues, such as political autonomy for ethnic regions, could not be bridged.

Khun Oo Reh, vice-chairman of the Karenni National Progressive Party and a NCCT member, said the government and army were obliged to offer an explanation for last month’s deadly attack before the nationwide ceasefire process could resume.

“We could not ignore the case of killings in Laiza. We could not focus only having meeting without solving the case of killings. We need to find a solution for this,” he said.

“For our ethnics’ side… I feel that we made a lot of compromises with them already, which cannot do that anymore” after the attack, said Khun Oo Reh.

http://www.irrawaddy.org/burma/ethnic-alliance-meet-govt-discuss-attack-ceasefire.html

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