Shan Herald Agency for News

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Shan State Day or Shan National Day? Posted: 10 Feb 2014 02:37 AM PST It is just like the debate on Burma and Myanmar: On the one hand are those who follow the official line and those who believe 'Shan Nation/National' means only Shans, who insist 7 February should be Shan State Day, that speaks for all Indigenous peoples in the state, which includes, apart from the majority Shans, PaO, Palaung, Wa, Kachin, Lahu Akha, Kayan, Danu, Intha, Kokang etc. On the other hand are those who rightly claim that since it was officially name Shan National Day in the first place by the Shan State Council but was unilaterally countermanded by the coup leaders after 1962 without the benefit of consultations with those concerned, the original name should be kept until the matter is carefully deliberated and resolved by those concerned. SHAN would say both sides have its pros and cons. For instance, while it is true the President of Shan States Council who signed the proclamation designating 7 February as 'Shan National Day' was a well educated Palaung prince, who must have known what he was doing, it cannot be denied that for most of the ordinary non-Shans, Shan State Day would be a preferred label. Like other matters, for instance, 8 or 14 states, it is high time each side lay its cards on the table and try to reach an agreement acceptable to both sides. Or they can all just forget democracy as well as federalism, the causes they have been claiming to be fighting for.

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