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HomeNewsPresident, top ethnic armed leaders to meet on Sept. 9th

President, top ethnic armed leaders to meet on Sept. 9th

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Group photo at NCA draft signing on March 31 ( Photo: MPC)
Group photo at NCA draft signing on March 31 ( Photo: MPC)
Reported by Chit Min Htun, The President, the army defense chief and top ethnic armed group leaders will meet on September 9, in Nay Pyi Taw, to

confirm the list of armed groups involved in signing the nationwide ceasefire agreement (NCA), according to Myanmar Peace Center (MPC).

“The meeting between the ethnic [armed groups’] leaders and the president is at the moment set for this September. After negotiating with the Union Minister U Aung Min, the ethnic leaders agreed to meet with the president on September 9,” said U Nyo Ohn Myint from MPC.

U Nyo Ohn Myint continued that of the 15 ethnic armed groups that the government allowed to facilitate in the NCA signing, at least 9 groups will be able to sign.

To ink the NCA, President U Thein Sein already sent invitations to 15 ethnic armed groups individually.

However, the government did not accept the other 6 ethnic armed groups, namely Myanmar National Democracy Alliance Army – Kokang army (MNDAA), Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), Arakan Army (AA), Lahu Democratic Union, Wa National Organization and Arakan Nationa Council.

At the Ethnic Armed Organizations Summit held on August 21-24, in Chiang Mai, northern city of Thailand, the armed groups announced that they accepted the policy of including all ethnic armed groups in signing the NCA. To secure this agreement, the top leaders would continue to negotiate with the President at the upcoming meeting.

August 27, last year, after the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw conference, the Union minister U Aung Min told reporters that the date of the endorsed NCA will be announced after the president and ethnic armed group leaders meet.

“From them [ethnic armed groups], 5 top leaders will come and will meet with the president. Then, the date for signing [the NCA] will be given. So, I will only announce that date when I know. Now, because I also do not know whether they [ethnic armed top leaders] will come or not, I also cannot tell,” said U Aung Min.

The top leaders from ethnic armed organizations, who are to meet in Nay Pyi Taw, are Nai Htaw Mon, Chairman of the NMSP, General Mutu Say Poe, Chairman of Karen National Union (KNU), General N’ban La Awng, Vice-chairman of Kachin Independent Organizations (KIO), Abel Tweed, Chairman of Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP), and [2nd] general Say Htin, Patron of Shan State Progressive Party (SSPP). Other delegates attending include the leaders of the Senior Delegation (SD), namely chief leader Pado Naw Zipporah Sein, Deputy Leader 1 Dr. La Ja, and Deputy Leader 2 Pu Zing Cung.

However, at the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw Conference, the Union minister U Aung Min, who is also the vice-chairman of the Union Peace-making Working Committee (UPWC), said that it’s possible that the peace process would restart, if the NCA could not be signed during this current government.

On March 31, 2015, the NCA draft was signed by UPWC and the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT) leaders and both sides exchanged the signed documents of the NCA draft, after the president gave his speech before all representatives.

Although both sides agreed on 32 out of 33 points of NCA text, the section regarding the “NCA inking agreement”, which is directed at ethnic armed group representatives to sign the NCA, 6 ethnic armed groups weren’t accepted to sign the NCA. That remains as a major barrier to the closure of the NCA.

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