Myanmar gov't signs nationwide ceasefire accord
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E-mail Xinhua, October 15, 2015
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| Commander-in-Chief of Myanmar's Defense Services Senior-General Min Aung Hlaing (C) signs during the signing ceremony of the Nationwide Ceasefire Accord (NCA) in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar, Oct. 15, 2015. The Myanmar government and eight ethnic armed groups out of 15 involved in peace deal with the government initiated the Nationwide Ceasefire Accord (NCA) in Nay Pyi Taw on Thursday, witnessed by local and international observers. [Xinhua] |
Myanmar government and eight ethnic armed groups out of a total of 15, involved in peace deal with the government, initiated the Nationwide Ceasefire Accord (NCA) in Nay Pyi Taw Thursday, signalling a major step towards ending more than six decades' civil conflict in the Southeast Asian country.
Witnessed by foreign diplomats representing 50 countries, political parties, civil society organizations as well as local and international observers including those from the United Nations, the European Union, China, India, Thailand and Japan, the solemn signing was launched by President U Thein Sein , two Vice Presidents, Commander-in-Chief of the Defense Services and his Deputy as well as speakers of both Houses from the government side, while the eight armed groups were represented by their respective leaders.
The eight armed groups are Kayin National Union (KNU), Kayin National Liberation Army (KNLA)-Peace Council, Pa-O Nationalities Liberation Organization (PNLO), All Burma Students'Democratic Front (ABSDF), Chin National Front (CNF), Arakan Liberation Party (ALP) , Democratic Kayin Buddhist Army (DKBA) and Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS) / Shan State Army-South (SSA-S).
President U Thein Sein underlined the event as a historic and significant one, saying that the road to future peace in Myanmar is now open.
"Reform would not succeed without peace," he said, however, adding that sustainable and lasting peace in the country cannot be achieved by ceasefire alone.
He called for political dialogue to address the deep-rooted issues and make arrangements to strengthen ceasefire during the period of political dialogue.
As for some remaining groups which are currently not ready to sign the NCA, the president said the government will continue its efforts to bring them into the process keeping the door open to them.
Myanmar government peace negotiator U Aung Min, who is Vice Chairman of the Union Peace Making Work Committee (UPWC) and Minister at the President's Office, attributed the possibility of the NCA signing to China's support in the process from the start to the finish, saying that there remains much to be done in cooperation with China to realize peace in the entire country.
He voiced continued coordination with the remaining armed groups, which are yet to sign the NCA, to complete the process.
Sun Guoxiang, Special Envoy for Asian Affairs of China's Foreign Ministry, who witnessed the signing along with other international observers, stressed that China always attached importance to Myanmar's peace process as a neighbor and China had actively participated in pushing forward the process, commenting that despite absence of some armed groups in the signing, it is a good result as they agreed to the contents included in the NCA.
According to the president, the signing will be followed by the formation of a Joint Ceasefire Monitoring Committee to prevent armed clashes and a Union Peace Dialogue Joint Committee to facilitate political dialogue.
The two sides are also set to draw up a political framework within 60 days after the formal NCA signing and start a political dialogue within 90 days.
Three days before the formal signing of NCA, the government removed the eight signatory armed groups from the list of "Unlawful Associations" and "Terrorist Organizations" respectively.
The other seven groups which claimed unreadiness to sign the NCA are Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), Kayinni National Progressive Party(KNPP), National Demoratic Alliance Army (NDAA), New Mon State Party (NMSP), National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Khaplang (NSCN-K), Palaung State Liberation Front (PSLF), Shan State Progressive Party/Shan State Army-North (SSPP/SSA-N) and United Wa State Army (UWSA).
Relating to another six more remaining groups, not invited in the peace deal but were proposed for inclusion in the signing process by the ethnic side, the government agreed earlier for three of them to take part in political dialogue, namely Lahu Democratic Union, Arakan National Council and Wa National Organization, while separate talks are set to be held with Kokang's Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) and Arakan Army (AA) , while the Taaung National Liberation Army (TNLA) is likely to sign the NCA if it reaches bilateral agreement with the government.
Efforts for the formal NCA signing were made through more than one year's negotiation between the two sides until a draft of the NCA was preliminarily signed in late March.
The peace process began in November 2013 when the government's Union Peace Making Work Committee (UPWC) and ethnic armed groups' National Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT) met in Myitgyina, Kachin state's capital, for the nationwide ceasefire talks, while the final round, which was the 9th, was held in Yangon in August.
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