Peacetalk

Major General Nerdah Bo Mya, head of the Karen National Defence Organisation in an exclusive interview with Karen News said that moves to sign a nationwide Ceasefire Agreement is worthless unless all ethnic armed groups are included. General Nerdah stressed that peace must be based on equality and justice and that a nationwide ceasefire is worthless unless there is a…

A delegation from the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS), Karen National Union (KNU) and other Karen armed groups informally met with President U Thein Sein and government representatives in Naypyidaw on Monday, August 3. Padoh Saw Kwe Htoo Win, KNU secretary, said the two hours meeting would support the next meeting between the Ethnic Armed Oorganizations, Senior Delegation and…

The senior delegation negotiating the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement on behalf of Burma’s ethnic armed organisations said in a statement that its talks with the government’s team got off to a good start. The statement released on Wednesday 22 July, said that the two negotiating teams, the Ethnic Armed Organizations’ Senior Delegation (SD) and the Union Peace-making Work Committee (UPWC) said…

In 1997 the Burma Army forced Karen people from the Mutraw (Papun) District in Karen State from their homes. Many of these people were practicing animists. During the forced displacement, villagers unable to live on their land were many of their deity’s lived, lost many aspects of their Karen animism beliefs. Despite living in displacement, fear and hardship, five Karen…

Since coming to power in 2011, President Thein Sein, a former general, has initiated a plan to resolve Burma’s decades-long ethnic conflict as part of broader domestic reform programs. Burma observers, both inside and outside, agree that resolving ethnic conflict is central to the success of political reform and lasting peace in the country. Among other things, President Thein Sein…

The government and ethnic groups’ representatives reached an agreement in principle to work towards getting the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement signed and starting the process of drafting a political dialogue framework with President U Thein Sein’s administration. The Union Peacemaking Working Committee led by Minister U Aung Min and the Ethnic Senior Delegation led by Padoh Naw Zipporah Sein met on…

A senior member of the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team explained to Karen News that the United Wa State Army (UWSA) and Restoration Council of Shan Sate/Shan State Army (RCSS/SSA) will not attend a conference to discuss the nationwide ceasefire draft documents. Padoh Kwe Htoo Win, a senior member of the NCCT told Karen News that the “conference is about informing…

In an exclusive series of interviews with Karen News, Padoh Naw Zipporah Sein, vice chairperson of the Karen National Union talks about a diverse range of critical issues facing ethnic people. In part 1, Ms Sein gives her perspective on the progress of the draft nationwide ceasefire agreement between the Burmese government and the country’s ethnic armed groups. Ms Sein…

An alliance of ethnic armed groups have said that they have reached an agreement with the government about a nationwide ceasefire but now need to take the draft wording to a summit for their leaders to ratify and sign the document. Naing Hong Sar, head of the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT) representing the ethnic armed organizations, told reporters at…

The United Nationalities Federal Council issued a statement on Saturday, March 28 stating that it was disappointed that once again political discussions with the Burma government have been sidetracked. The UNFC said that in all its negotiation processes with the government it witnesses over and over “the occurrence of some other unexpected problem to choke up dialogue or change the…