5 August
The two-day meeting of the Union Government and the Ethnic Armed Organizations (Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement signatories) concluded on 2 August in Nay Pyi Taw, bringing positive results which will allow the two sides to move forward.
The positive results, which broke a deadlock between the two sides, have demonstrated that the negotiators could turn the diverse stances into common agreement at the negotiation table with mutual respect, magnanimity and understanding.
The recent achievement brought by the two sides also ensures them to move forward.
The 7th NCA-S EAO Work Group meeting is being held in Nay Pyi Taw, and negotiators from both sides are striving for reaching agreements which would be included in the Part-3 of the Union Accord to be signed at the coming fourth session of the Union Peace Conference- 21st Century Panglong.
So far, the two sides have agreed on 13 framework agreements for implementing the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement and eight titles for the future tasks to be continued step by step in the post-2020 period. Regarding the roadmap for building a Union based on democracy and federal system, two points have been agreed by the two sides.
The fourth session of the Union Peace Conference-21st Century Panglong will be held in the third week of August, and the delegates will discuss and approve the basic principles that will form the foundations for the establishment of our democratic federal union.
If we look back at our country’s history, soon after the 20th Century Panglong Agreement and our Independence, we succumbed to the fires of internal conflict. For nearly seventy years, peace, stability and development in Myanmar have fallen victim to conflict. Our people over successive generations have seen their socio-economic situation and morale undermined, while our country’s future has been gradually corroded.
Even today, Myanmar has not yet been able to escape from the trap of poverty and conflict, and great efforts will be needed if we are to catch up with the rest of the world. Our people have been waiting for almost seventy years to witness the ray of hope for a better future that this conference represents.
Therefore, we can say that building a democratic federal Union is the exit path of this country towards stability, peace and prosperity.
Therefore, peace negotiators are highly advised to continue to strive for achieving more agreements in this meeting with commitment to shaping a democratic federal union.
We may have different approaches, but to reach the common goal, if we have farsightedness, and unity, there is nothing that can stop our success.
