NMSP Says Pledge to Sign Peace Deal Is Not an Agreement to Lay Down Its Arms
NMSP Says Pledge to Sign Peace Deal Is Not an Agreement to Lay Down Its Arms
The Irrawaddy, 01 Feb 2018
URL: https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/nmsp-says-pledge-sign-peace-deal-not-agreement-lay-arms.html
Signing the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) is not an agreement to disarm, the New Mon State Party (NMSP) said in a statement issued to mark the 71st Mon National Day.
The NMSP intends to walk down the road of political dialogue by attending the upcoming Panglong peace conference, as only by working together with other ethnic political groups and democracy forces can we amend the 2008 constitution, which has written by the former military regime, be successfully amended to reflect the interests of all, the statement said.
NMSP leaders promised the government at a meeting in Napyitaw last month that they would sign the NCA in February. The Lahu Democratic Union (LDU), another ethnic group, also pledged to sign the accord at the same time.
Some ethnic Mon have voiced disagreement with the decision by the NMSP leadership to commit to the NCA instead of waiting to sign it with the four other members of the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC). Because of this, the NMSP wanted to take the opportunity to explain its political stand on Mon National Day.
In its statement, the group’s leaders said they tried to stand with their UNFC allies but some of the members had opted to side with the Northern Alliance armed groups, insisting on their inclusion in the peace process as a condition for signing the NCA. Furthermore, the NMSP’s base is in an isolated area in southern Myanmar, making it difficult to cooperate with other ethnic armed groups in the alliance.
Yesterday, the Myanmar government released five NMSP members who had been imprisoned in Kyaikmayaw town ahead of the NMSP signing the NCA.
The NMSP intends to walk down the road of political dialogue by attending the upcoming Panglong peace conference, as only by working together with other ethnic political groups and democracy forces can we amend the 2008 constitution, which has written by the former military regime, be successfully amended to reflect the interests of all, the statement said.
NMSP leaders promised the government at a meeting in Napyitaw last month that they would sign the NCA in February. The Lahu Democratic Union (LDU), another ethnic group, also pledged to sign the accord at the same time.
Some ethnic Mon have voiced disagreement with the decision by the NMSP leadership to commit to the NCA instead of waiting to sign it with the four other members of the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC). Because of this, the NMSP wanted to take the opportunity to explain its political stand on Mon National Day.
In its statement, the group’s leaders said they tried to stand with their UNFC allies but some of the members had opted to side with the Northern Alliance armed groups, insisting on their inclusion in the peace process as a condition for signing the NCA. Furthermore, the NMSP’s base is in an isolated area in southern Myanmar, making it difficult to cooperate with other ethnic armed groups in the alliance.
Yesterday, the Myanmar government released five NMSP members who had been imprisoned in Kyaikmayaw town ahead of the NMSP signing the NCA.