“The ND [national dialogue] is not a one-time event. It must be held frequently,” said General Yawd Serk, the leader of the Restoration Council of Shan State/Shan State Army South (RCSS/SSA-S). “Will we not hold it just because we can’t [get permission to] hold it in Taunggyi or Panglong? As for me, I will invite experts and discuss with them even if we still cannot hold the ND. Another thing is that we need to discuss with the leaders from the CSSU [Committee for Shan State Unity] about amending the ND.”

Signatories of the nationwide ceasefire, such as the RCSS, are supposed to be allowed to stage dialogues in their respective states and regions. The opinions and perspectives gathered from these dialogues are meant to be presented at Union-level peace talks where they will serve as the underpinning for negotiations over the reshaping of the country as a federal Union.

The RCSS has not been granted permission to hold its dialogue in in Taunggyi or in Panglong. The majority of Shan leaders have rejected counterproposals to stage the event in less widely accessible areas, such as Langkho, Mong Pan, or Mong Hta, which are under the RCSS/SSA-S’s control.

But Gen Yawd Serk countered that assessing the perspectives of the Shan people is more important that squabbling over the precise location of the event, especially as the Union-level peace talks continue to move ahead. The third so-called 21st-Century Panglong Peace Conference is anticipated to be held sometime around Union Day next year.

The National League for Democracy-led government has urged the RCSS/SSA-S to move ahead with its national dialogue at one of the proposed alternative locations.

The RCSS is one of two ethnic armed groups in Shan State party to the NCA, the government’s signature peace pact. The other is the Pa-O National Liberation Organization, which has already held its own national dialogue among the Pa-O people.