Fresh fighting in Kachin State could shatter peace process

Representatives of 16 ethnic insurgencies gathered in Laiza, Kachin State, yesterday  for talks on concluding a nationwide ceasefire with the central government. 

     The talks come amid a fresh outbreak of fighting in the state between government troops and Kachin rebel forces. 

“We are here to demonstrate our desire to end the civil war,” said Mutu Saepho, chairman of Karen National Union, a rebel group that has waged an insurgency in eastern Myanmar since 1949. “But we need solid guarantee from government on the politicalprocess,” he said.

Since coming to power in March 2011, President Thein Sein’s government has signed bilateral ceasefire agreements with nearly allof the insurgencies and announced plans for a nationwide accord inearly 2014.

The myriad ethnic minority groups have been fighting for semi-autonomy in their traditional territories such as the Karen,Kachin and Mon states for decades.

The rebel groups will seek political solutions to their struggles such as guarantees of rights to control their own natural resourcesand partial self-rule.

“We need to know exactly what the government plans to do after we sign the so-called nationwide ceasefire,” said Major Sai La, spokesman for the Shan State Army.

Representatives of the United Wa State Army, the largest rebelgroup, will also attend the Laiza meeting, which is due to continue until Friday.

“This is the very first time for such a meeting in Myanmar,” said Lamai Gun Ja, of the Peace Talk Creation Group that plays an intermediary role between the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO) and the government.

“I think it’s very important for our country’s future.” Ending military assaults on ethnic minorities was a key demand among Western democracies when they lifted economic sanctions on Myanmar.

The US has urged both the government and the KIO to avoid action that threatens the lives and well-being people living in Kachin State, following a week of military action there. 

The statement from the US embassy in Yangon comes after one Kachin woman died and 2,000 civilians remained trapped amid ongoing operations by government troops in southern Kachin State, Kachin relief workers told the Irrawaddy.

“The October 10 [peace] agreement between the government and KIO was an encouraging development in building trust between the two sides. Actions consistent with the letter and spirit of the agreement, including mutual restraint and continued close communication, will be critical in coming weeks to demonstrate sincerity, begin to overcome mutual mistrust, and create conditions for lasting peace,” the statement said.