Consider ethnic demands for charter change: Thein Sein

The outcome of peace discussions should not be overlooked when considering constitutional changes, said President Thein Sein in a monthly radio address on Saturday.

He said details would be discussed to set a date for signing a nationwide ceasefire agreement. The talks will be based on the results of a recent ethnic conference in Law Khee Lar in Kayin State.

Following the ceasefire, the president added, the country will be able to adopt a framework to hold political talks.

Thein Sein also stressed the need to take certain measures for constitutional amendments, as the main demand of ethnic groups is a federal state which embraces equality, autonomy, ethnic rights, cultures and languages.

The president urged parliament, political parties and other political forces to consider the demands made by the ethnic groups on the issue of constitutional change, which he said must be compatible with democratic norms and values.

In his address, Thein Sein praised the leaders of all the ethnic armed groups for their unanimous decision to sign a ceasefire during the Law Khee Lar conference. They reached a common resolution despite different stances at the beginning.

The president especially applauded Karen National Union chairman Saw Mutu Saw Poe for his remark: “Make history by courageously signing the agreement”.

Thein Sein also said it was natural that a nation in the process of nascent changes would face difficulties and challenges to its political, economic and peace issues. The government, however, was committed to making efforts to yield good results, he said.

 

“Be transparent on debts”

U Myint, chief economic adviser to President Thein Sein, has called on the government to be transparent about Myanmar’s debts to foreign countries including China and those belonging to the Paris Club.

The public should be informed about the nation’s debts, he said during a business talk entitled “Macro-Economic Policy Lessons for Myanmar”, held at the Ministry of Commerce offices.

“Political fighting can ruin the economy,” U Myint said. “Our country has debts. The people must be informed of it. How much is owed to which countries? On negotiating with the 19 countries of the Paris Club, some debts were written off. To other countries such as China, how much does Myanmar owe? When are the debts to be paid off? The public should be informed in detail.”

The Paris Club of creditor countries comprises Japan, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, England and the United States.

“Among the Paris Club members, only Japan and Norway have written off some of Myanmar’s debts. It is not known how much Myanmar owes other countries that don’t belong to the Paris Club, such as China. Once I asked for this information, as we wanted to know how much we owe foreign governments and businessmen. The answer I got was that I could receive this information provided it was kept confidential. I didn’t say anything further,” U Myint said.

During a discussion held in France, Paris Club members wrote off 60 per cent of Myanmar’s total debts. They also allowed a deferred period of 15 years to pay off the remaining debts, state-owned media reported in January last year.

Myanmar had also cleared its arrears of US$512 million (Bt16.7 billion) to the Asian Development Bank and $430 million to the World Bank with the help of bridge loans from Japan.