At an event this week celebrating the 29th anniversary of the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD), a party leader expressed concern over the sluggish pace of peace negotiations.
Two years after a landmark peace deal was signed between the government and a minority of the ethnic armed groups fighting in the country, politicians have started bemoaning the lack of evident progress toward ending Myanmar’s many armed conflicts.
Sai Nyunt Lwin, general secretary of the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD), told the Shan Herald on October 26 that many stumbling blocs remain, yet government negotiators do not appear to easing hostilities, or opening doors to ending the decades of antagonism plaguing relations between ethnic frontier areas and the state.
“We want two things to be accomplished,” he said. “The first one is to amend the 2008 Constitution, but this hasn’t worked out so far. The second thing is … there are two ethnic armed groups among the Shan. Only one group has entered into discussions with the government. We want the other group to do the same, but it can’t right now because [the government negotiators] do not accept the demands from our side. They keep pressuring the armed groups with their own demands, and are putting up obstacles,” said Sai Nyunt Lwin.
Ethnic armed groups fighting along the China-Myanmar borderlands have forged a new coalition to represent them in the peace talks. The Federal Political Negotiation Consultative Committee (FPNCC) emerged in April out of frustrations with the current level of peace talks an a desire to rewrite the lines of ethnic autonomy granted to states. The Shan State Progressive Party/Shan State Army-North (SSPP/SSA-N) joined the bloc, which is led by the powerful United Wa State Army. The Restoration Council of Shan State/Shan State Army (RCSS/SSA) meanwhile has signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA).
Ko Moe from the Myanmar People Alliance Shan State, said he supports the political views of the SNLD and believes that the party plays a big role in the country-building and the peace processes.
The SNLD was the most successful ethnic party to emerge from the 2015 polls, netting 40 seats. The party won an additional six seats in the by-election this year.
