The new policies of Burma’s ethnic Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), announced on August 30 after its Party Congress, was explained at length to the Kachin public today in its capital Laiza on the China-Burma border by a senior official.  

Lt-Gen N’ban La Awng, Vice-Chairman of KIO imparted a fair understanding of the new KIO policies to participants. He made it clear that it will not lead to a fresh civil war immediately. However, he cautioned the civilian population that they should be alert to the possibilities of war, participants said.

The KIO Vice-Chairman sounded a warning note and said civil war may start anew, any time, should the Burmese junta begin a military offensive on the KIO, participants said.

He also drew the attention of participants to next week’s China visit of Burmese junta supremo Snr-Gen Than Shwe. He pointed out that Burmese military leaders were in principle not believable, untrustworthy, who do not bother to abide by the law, participants added.

Lt-Gen N’ban La Awng is believed to be the most powerful man in the KIO. He came back to the Laiza capital recently following a gall bladder surgery in Singapore.

The interaction with the public was held at the public Hall, the Myu Lawt Wunli Lu Gawknu, where over 1,000 residents of Laiza took part.

Yesterday, the new policies of the KIO vis a vis the junta were detailed to only the men and women in KIO and its armed-wing the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) in the KIA military base in Laiza, KIO officials in Laiza said.

The KIO’s new stand outlined in the August 30 statement deals with six factors but primarily the KIO has rejected transforming KIA and other departments before a genuine federal democracy based on the 1947 Panglong Agreement is established in the country.

In passing the statement also informed the Burmese military leaders that the KIO would like the junta-conducted November 7 elections to be free and fair.

A major policy change of the KIO maintains that it will cooperate with any force which is for a multiethnic federal union of Burma.

Kachin people as well as all ethnic armed groups in military-ruled Burma have welcomed and applauded the new Kachin policy.

Lt-Gen Yen Myint, former Chief of Military Affairs Security of the junta on August 22 warned the KIO that it will be outlawed and termed an illegal outfit if it does not surrender its weapons to the Burmese Army starting September 1.

The junta brass till now has not responded to the KIO statement. No renewed military movement by the Burmese Army is in evidence either, near KIO territories in Kachin State and Northeast Shan State, KIA officials said.