Constitution to be discussed after ceasefire: minister
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Political dialogue, including amending the 2008 constitution, must come after a nationwide ceasefire is in place, according to Union Minister Aung Min.
The minister for the President’s Office was speaking at a forum about the role of public organisations in national peace-building, held on November 30 at Yangon University.
“The coming political dialogue will include amending the 2008 constitution. For now, I think the nation-wide ceasefire accord may be reached this December or January next year. After that, establishment of frameworks will follow, said Aung Min.
The government and ethnic armed groups will soon meet in Hpa-an, Kayin state, for talks on a nation-wide ceasefire, and to establish a framework for political talks to follow.
He added that representatives from the government, parliament, the military, ethnic armed groups, political parties and civil organisations will take part in the dialogue.
The Hpa-an meeting is scheduled to take place in mid-December between the government Union Peacemaking Work Committee and NCCT, which was formed by ethnic armed groups after the Laiza conference in Kachin state.
Hotels to charge current prices for SEA Games
Only a few hotels have fixed room rates, while the rest will charge current prices during the upcoming Southeast Asian Games.
“The state will pay for the hotel fees of the athletes, invited guests and special guests. It will pay the fees on a fixed rate. We have already notified the hotel entrepreneurs,” said Kaung Htut, director of the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism.
The government will pay the fees for around 20 hotels in Nay Pyi Taw, Yangon and Mandalay at a fixed rate of US$50 (about Bt1,600) per day during the SEA Games. However, there is no fixed rate for other local and foreign guests who come to watch the Games.
“There is no fixed rate. The guests will have to pay according to current price,” said Mandalay Hotel Zone chairman Myint Zu.
“Hotels cannot charge more than $50 for the athletes, coaches, and the special invited guests. There is no fixed rate for other guests so they will have to pay according to the current price,” said Kyi Thein, general secretary of the Myanmar Hoteliers Association. Sporting events for the 27th SEA Games will be held in Yangon, Nay Pyi Taw, Mandalay and Ngwe Saung Beach. Over 7,000 rooms and 114 hotels will be used for the Games: 1,194 rooms in Yangon, 442 rooms in Mandalay, 4,145 rooms in Nay Pyi Taw and 222 rooms in Ngwe Saung Beach.
Yangon no-horn zone ‘a failure’
The government’s ”No Car Horn Zone”,
