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“The entire public will continue to suffer hardship until this revolution comes to an end. I would like to call on the people to be patient as nobody wants to live under military rule.” Khu Daniel (Secretary-1 of the KNPP)

An interview with Secretary-1 of the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP).

February 7th, 2022

The military council released a statement dated on February 6th, inviting all Ethnic Armed Organizations (EAOs) to the grand ceremony of Diamond Jubilee Union Day as well as pre-coordination meeting on perpetual peace talks to build the Union based on democracy and federalism during the ceremony of the Diamond Jubilee Union Day, except the organizations which are declared as the terrorist organizations.

The KNPP is an EAO which has not signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA). The KNPP signed the state-level ceasefire agreement in the reign of U Thein Sein in 2012. The KT interviewed Khu Daniel, Secretary-1 of the KNPP about the KNPP’s view on the military council’s invitation to the pre-coordination on perpetual peace talks.

Q: May I know your comment on the word “Eternal Peace” firmly held by the military council? Because fighting is taking place every day on the other hand.

A: Eternal peace is only for the dead person. There is no eternal peace for the alive people. The word “peace” is not useful. Now, we should use words like “Federal Democratic Country” based on politics. Peace is the religious term. The word “Eternal Peace” is used only for those who died. In my view, the word “Peace” is not a political term.

Q: Our country has had no development due to the internal armed conflicts during over 70 years since independence. How will the KNPP which is an armed organization respond to the military council’s word that the country needs eternal peace for development.

A: There is a reason why fighting is taking place. We will never achieve peace as long as the military council has a desire to get dominant influences in terms of races and politics.
The civil war never comes to an end. Tranquility will be restored only when every citizen can enjoy equal rights. Everybody knows that the country will see development only after the restoration of tranquility. The country will not see tranquility as long as there are no equal rights. The ongoing war will not come to an end. There will be no development. The countries which see the civil war face higher rates of poverty. Everybody knows the civil war hampers the country’s growth. Avoiding the war relies largely on the government. The people will revolutionize the government as it is not right.

Q: What is the difference between the peace talks held in the reign of U Thein Sein and the NLD government led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

A: It is true that the peace process started in the reign of U Thein Sein. Then, it had a little desire to implement the peace process. However, it was not a one-way system. They held the talks with the view that they would have more chances and get the upper hand. They said yes to some matters for ethnics. This problem has arisen due to the lack of efforts in peace, national reconciliation and ceasefire in the time of the NLD government led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. In reality, both the NLD and the military don’t want to grant the rights to the ethnics. Armed organizations had high hopes for the NLD. The NLD neglected the EAOs in some cases when it came to power. There is a slight difference between the two governments. This problem would not arise if the NLD paid constant attention to the peace process.

Q: What is the difference in the talks after the coup?

A: If the military council invites the groups to hold talks by classification, it will happen again. There is no reason to come to an end if either the parties or the armed organizations have no equal political rights. The situation may become better if all parties have equal rights.

Q: How many times did the KNPP participate in the peace talks during over 70 years of revolution? Did any results come out for ethnic areas?

A: It can be said that other things remain unchanged except the fact that there was no fighting during the eight-year peace period. We look at the rights from the ethnic point of view. Take a look at it from the political and human rights point of view, there is no equal rights. At the beginning, the U Thein Sein-led government paid attention to those rights. But the government prioritized their advantages when we entered the political framework. This happens as the rights of ethnic, political rights and human rights are unequal.

Q: The military council said it released the ceasefire statements 20 times during the period from December 21st, 2018 to February 28th, 2022. On the other hand, the military council is carrying out targeted attacks on and violence acts against the civilians in the whole country including Karenni State. May I know your view on the military council’s act.

A: Our ethnic armed organizations have taken up arms to fight for the rights of ethnics. We have taken up arms for the country’s development, peace and tranquility. The military council offers the EAOs to hold peace talks while it is killing the people. It is impossible. I don’t know whether other organizations will join the talks or not. They may hold the talks if they think about the interest of the organization alone. For us, we are working only for the interest of the public. The public must be in stable condition when we hold the talks. We will not work only for the interest of our organization alone.

Q: What is the difference between ethnic revolutionary processes before and after the coup?

A: We discussed political and public development before the coup. We held the talks based on the NCA. But, even 10 NCA signatories are in a position to move backward as the politics is in deadlock. The next talks were stalled. But the public gets some rights. Some people know it. It is found that there are many facts which will cost the public in the long term. The frequent outbreaks of the stalled peace process is the result of it. Since the coup, such rights have not emerged. The military is talking about the peace dialogue. But it has not officially invited us. The military also invites the NCA-signatories. The PPST also held a meeting. However, under the current circumstance, the public is crucial. The organizations should think about it at a time when the public faces the killings. They are required to decide whether they should join the talks or not.

Q: Which message do you want to convey to the public who is experiencing different plights throughout the revolution?

A: The entire public will continue to suffer hardship until this revolution comes to an end. I would like to call on the people to be patient as nobody wants to live under military rule. We need to help each other. The people have already had it in their minds.

Sent by Maw Oo Myar (Kantarawaddy Times).

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