The Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT), set up by 16 armed movements in November, is due to meet today in Chiang Mai to finalize its review to the Third Ethnic Armed Organizations (EAO) conference to be held at the Kachin stronghold Laiza, 24-26 July, according to sources.
The NCCT had already met on 13-16 June to review its meeting with the Union Peacemaking Work Committee (UPWC), set up by Naypyitaw. Last Sunday, 13 July, the NCCT delegation led by Padoh Kwe Htoo Win, Karen National Union (KNU), was met by the Myanmar Peace Center (MPC) delegation to deliver President Thein Sein’s response.
The MPC office in Rangoon was said to have been visited by the President on Saturday, 12 July, when they talked for more than two hours. “The President has offered important concessions,” said an MPC member:
- His vision is to establish a union based on the principles of democracy and federalism, and on the outcome of the planned political dialogue
- The country already has a federal structure, but needs increased power sharing
- He agrees that DDR (Disarmament, Demobilization and Re-integration) should come after political settlement (and not before as proposed earlier by the government)”
Another MPC member also defended the military by saying it has not been dominating the ongoing peace talks. “With the ceasefire negotiations, since it is a military matter, the generals are naturally active participants,” he said. “But they leave it to the President to deal with political questions.”
On the other hand, the road blocks to Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) still include, among other:
- Whether it should be just “Panglong Spirit” as proposed by the UPWC and “Panglong Spirit, Agreement and Promises” as demanded by the NCCT
- With regards to Transitional Arrangements, the government wants broad wordings “just so they don’t undermine national sovereignty” while the NCCT wants them to be spelled out
The review is reportedly due to last 2- days. “Then we will all be heading to Laiza,” said an NCCT member. “I myself will be leaving today.”
A number of political parties and civil society organizations have expressed their disappointment that the NCA negotiations have taken so long. “How long do we have to wait?” asked a politician during a meeting in Chiang Mai on 7 July.
According to the 3 stages outlined by both sides, the political parties and the CSOs will be participants only after the NCA has been signed and negotiations for Framework for Political Dialogue (FPD) begins, followed by Political Dialogue (PD).
