IMNA : The Central Committee (CC) of the New Mon State Party (NMSP), decided last week during its 4 day long biannual meeting to replace retired committee members.
The meeting was held at NMSP headquarters at the eastern part of the Ye river in Tavoy District, from September 18th to September 21st.
“We held our 6-months rotation [every 6 months] Central Committee meeting, and just replaced some in-charge positions”, said a CC member, who joined in the meeting.
He explained that the main position that had been left empty was that of Joint Secretary within the Central Executive Committee (CEC) ; the position’s holder assists the CEC’s General Secretary. Nai Chan Toik, former Joint Secretary, resigned from this position this spring, and was replaced last week by Nai Aung Min. Nai Aung Min was previously in-charge of the NMSP’s Alliance and Foreign Relations Department; this position will be filled by Nai Tala Nyi.
In late April, the SPDC set its first deadline for NMSP to lay down arms and transform the MNLA into a Border Guard Force (BGF) or militia force. At that time, the NMSP cut relations with the SPDC and government liaison officers moved back to party headquarters. Nai Chan Toik from the CEC, and two CC members, Nai Tin Hla and Nai Htaw Ein, resigned from the party. The NMSP delayed filling these positions until last week’s CC meeting.
In this latest biannual meeting, the NMSP’s Central Committee discussed the current political situation of the party, and the Burmese junta’s latest attempt to pressure the party into either surrendering its armed wing the Mon National Liberation Army (MNLA), or converting the wing into a government-controlled BGF.
Chief Commander Lt. Gen. Thet Naing Win, from the Southeast Command, ordered NMSP leaders to lay down their armed force by September 1st during a late August meeting this year, telling party leaders that failure to do so would lead the NMSP being recognized as an illegal organization.
The CC member interviewed by IMNA reported that the NMSP’s current policy is that they will not instigate the break-up of its 15 year ceasefire agreement with the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC). However, should the SPDC’s troops invade the areas allotted to the NMSP by the ceasefire, the party feels that they will have to resist with armed fighting.
This CC member also reported that following the NMSP’s latest refusal to surrender the MNLA to the Burmese government on September 1st, the party withdrew its members from SPDC-controlled areas. Fighting has not yet broken out.
Along with the NMSP, other ethnic armed political groups, such as the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), the Shan State Army – South (SSA), and United Wa State Army (UWSA) have resisted transforming their armed forces into BGFs, and have refused to participate in the 2010 elections.
NMSP representatives report that the party’s official stance is that as long as the Mon people are denied self-determination and political rights by the Burmese government, it is inappropriate for the party to transform the MNLA into a BGF or militia force.
