Border Guard Force (BGF) Major Saw Chit Thu told Mizzima on August 19 that top ranking leaders plan to have discussions with their respective organizations to carry out state development efforts by avoiding armed conflict in Karen state.
A head of Bureau of Special Operations from the BGF said that they are planning to transform the state peace process to a development process. Karen armed groups are also trying to unify and form a single group.
He said, “We will take time to unite with all armed groups systematically. Negotiations will be made from the bottom to top level so as to ensure conflicts do not flare up again.”
Although discussions for unification have taken place off record among ethnic armed groups, official discussion have not been held so far.
As initial steps towards the development process, activities such as drugs prevention and clearance of land mines have been carried out by a joint body of state armed groups and working committees.
However, in spite of the development process, there was an encounter on August 16 between the BGF and Karen National Union (KNU). Therefore, negotiations and discussions are being held in order to prevent and ensure it does not happen again in the future.
“As far as the current conflict is concerned, it happened due to issues between low ranking personnel, however, we as leaders have to bear responsibility for it. We have tried our best to ensure it would not happen again”, said Saw Chit Thu.
