Representatives from the New Mon State Party (NMSP) and the Karen National Union (KNU) had a meeting on Sunday in Yar-bu Village, Yebyu Township, Tenasserim Divison, wherein both sides founded a liaison committee to prevent further clashes.
On Thursday [September 8], gunfire was exchanged between a unit from the NMSP’s armed wing, the Mon National Liberation Army (MNLA), and the KNU’s Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) over a land territory dispute near Tae Chaung Village, Yebyu Township, Tenasserim Division.
Although no one from either side was wounded, it damaged several houses in the Tae Chaung Village, according to Tae Chaung villagers.
To prevent further clashes in the Yebyu Township, prior to focusing on the territory dispute, representatives from both sides met on September 11 and founded a liaison committee.
The clash occurred because of the ambiguity in territories amongst ethnic armed groups and the lack of networking with one another, these are the essential reasons leading to the liaison committee’s establishment, according to Padoh Win Khine, official in charge of KNU Myeik-Tavoy District Liaison Office.
“They will explain to the central level about this territory dispute. However, before that, in order to solve the problem and prevent further problems, officials in charge of territories from both sides met and founded a committee to work together,” said Padoh Win Khine.
Sunday’s meeting was led by NMSP’s central committee member Nai Aung Magay and NMSP’s Tavoy District Chairman Nai Aka as well as KNU’s central committee member Padoh Man Nyein Maung and KNU’s Myeik-Tavoy District Chairman Padoh Saw Sar Pithu.
The meeting was a district level meeting, wherein both sides agreed to report to the central levels of the NMSP and KNU respectively, to recognize territories, to supervise by respective KNU and NMSP’s territory unit commander officers in order to prevent further clashes, and to inform each side’s patrols.
“What happened was not on purpose. Founding this liaison has the potential to avoid further problems,” said Nai Win Hla, official in charge of NMSP Home Affair Department.
On September 9, representatives from the KNU and NMSP also met at NMSP’s liaison office in Three Pagodas Pass Town, on the Thai-Burma Border, after Thursday’s clash in Yebyu Township, in order to prevent further clashes in other territory areas.
Thursday’s clash was the first clash between the NMSP and KNU after they had a major clash over a territory dispute in the Three Pagodas Pass area, 1988.
