Even as “Special Guests,” UNFC will not attend peace conference

The United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC) announced on May 23 that it would decline to attend the second round of national peace talks starting the following day. A last-ditch effort to entice the five armed groups on the council—allowing them to attend as “special guests” rather than observers—would not have fundamentally changed their role, and failed to sway the group’s decision.

“They offered us a “special invitation,” which might sound nice, but is really just another way of saying ‘observer.’ We’ve decided that we will not attend if there is no equality in negotiations,” said Nai Hongsar, vice chairman of the UNFC. He spoke at a press conference in Chiang Mai, Thailand, after a council leadership meeting there.

In a statement released following the meeting, the council said that although its members would not attend, they continued to support political dialogue in the name of building a federal democratic union. The statement said that the council supports the spirit and framework of the negotiations, known as the 21st Century Panglong Peace Conference.

Members of Myanmar’s (Burma’s) other large ethnic bloc, the Northern Alliance, do plan to attend and will be joined by the Shan State Progress Party/ Shan State Army (SSPP/SSA) which is a member of the UNFC. The other members of the UNFC, which will not attend, are the New Mon State Party, the Lahu Democratic Union, the Arakan National Council, and the Karenni National Progressive Party.