The Karen National Union (KNU), the All Burma Students’ Democratic Front (ABSDF) and the Chin National Front (CNF), which were among those that signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA), released a joint statement on their common political goals and positions regarding the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) on 12 October.
In their statement, the three ceasefire signatories outlined five political goals and six positions, and declared that they will not engage in talks with the junta beyond the NCA unless the military junta ends its violence against the people. The goals include ending the junta’s involvement in politics, reconstituting the country, and drafting a new constitution under civilian rule.
“We are released this statement because we needed to make our common goals known to the world. We have always openly expressed these common positions. But the junta has never accepted them, it has always rejected them and evaded them in various ways. If you look at what we have published, you will see that it is for the people of the whole country. Its implementation requires the participation of the entire population on all fronts,” KNU spokesman Padoh Saw Kler Say said.
The ceasefire groups’ common goals include justice for victims of the armed conflict, agreement to international mediation assistance, rejection of fully authoritarian systems and non-acceptance of monopolization of power by political elites.
The military council has invited the ethnic armed organizations (EAOs) that signed the NCA, other groups and individuals that did not sign, and international witnesses to participate in the eighth anniversary of the signing of the NCA on 15 October. The KNU and other ceasefire signatories released this statement as that date approaches.
The NCA collapsed after the military coup in 2021. ABSDF spokesman Yebaw Sonny said they will not attend the event marking the 8th anniversary the NCA signing. The NCA was made under the previous political context. Now the politics has changed, so it is just an agreement from the past. We will not engage with the junta in a way that legitimizes it,” said Yebaw Sonny.
Moreover, the ceasefire groups say that in previous talks with the junta before the coup, their political stance was already known. Since the junta was trying to control the EAOs through the NCA, further talks with the junta are not appropriate, the KNU warned.
“They had already said that everything in the NCA is for the EAOs and not for them (the military) to follow. That was clear from the beginning. From their side, they just want to continue the way they want and restrict the armed ethnic groups through the NCA. We have already understood that. Therefore, for the KNU, political talks with the junta are not appropriate – we want to inform the people about this,” said Padoh Saw Kler Say.
The statement also calls on the people, NCA signatories and international governments not to participate in actions that prolong military rule, and to support the three ceasefire groups in implementing their common goals and positions.
The military council has yet to respond to this statement.
While constantly claiming to seek peace talks with ethnic armed groups and preparing for the 8th anniversary of the signing of the NCA in Nay Pyi Taw, the junta continues its offensives in EAO-controlled areas, burning houses and shelling them with fighter jets and heavy weapons.
Sent by KIC.