Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Shan Herald Agency for News

Shan Herald Agency for News

To Hopeland and Back: The 21st trip for the 21st Century Panglong

Posted: 19 Sep 2016 11:45 PM PDT

Day Eleven. Thursday, 1 September 2016

Each partner gets what he wants out of the deal,
which is the essence of successful negotiation
The Global Negotiator

One good thing about the conference is that it is being broadcast live on radio and television. Now people don't have to wait to read from state and private media to make up their minds about it.

(Some later told me that very few of the presenters spoke in a language that can be understood by ordinary folks. "At least The Lady did better than most," one remarks. I hope presenters for future conferences take note of it.)

Here are the excepts from the presentations today, plus my remarks.
U Kyaw Tint Swe:        The well has been dug. The water is clear. What's needed is just to draw the water.

U Win Htein:               (Repeating what The Lady said earlier) we should consider more about what we can give rather than what we want.

U Myint Soe, retired general, Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP):
·         We need peace because of two reasons: One, we have big powers around us, and two, we have different ethnic peoples in our country.
·         The weakness of the 1947 constitution plunged our country into a civil war
·         We should employ a geographic system (for names of states, instead of ethnic-based names)
·         We should prevent the country from becoming a confederation
·         Ideas like "8 state configuration" and "multinational states" can lead to the disintegration of the Union

My remark:                 The theme presented by him is reiterated further by almost all of the 10 military presenters.
Col Tint Naing Aye, Tatmadaw:
The military presenters' job is to reassure all of us that the military drafted 2008 constitution is a federal one, which matches every cardinal characteristic of a federal state.

Several of them keep referring to Ronald Watts (1929-2015), a Canadian academic who had written a book on federalism. I have never heard of him coming to Hopeland to lecture anybody, let alone the military. Which makes me wonder. (it would take me 4 more days to find out who the culprit was.)

The Karen National Union (KNU), Karen Peace Council (KPC) and the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA) do a good job of presenting a combined paper, which is divided into 3 ten-minute parts and read out by 3 presenters. The United Nationalities Federal Council, better known by its initials UNFC, "inspired" by the trio, is also to make a 5-part presentation tomorrow).

Dr Aye Maung, Arakan National Party
·         To establish a Union made up of ethnic states
·         There must be a Bamar/Burman state
·         Residuary power rests with the constituent states (which I think is interpreted by the military as turning the country into a confederation, instead of a federation
·         There must be state defense forces commanded by respective state governments

Dr Lian Hmung Sakhong, Chin National Front (CNF)
He gives an excellent short account of the original Panglong and recommends that a democratic federal union instituting both "self rule" and "shared rule" be established.

Sai Tun Aye, Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD)
The party and its members mostly never mince with words. Its message is the emergence of a "new constitution" that bows to the wishes of the people.

Mai Win Htoo, General Secretary, Ta'ang National Party (TNP)
·         Our children have become servants in neighboring countries due to the fratricidal fighting
·         States should be established based on both geography and ethnicity. All those who fulfill the criteria should be allowed to form own states, including Wa, PaO, Palaung-Ta'ang, and Bamar. (which draws laughter from the audience)

Arakan Liberation Party (ALP)
Arakan at that time was in Burma Proper and we learned that Gen Aung San had signed it on our behalf. (He also signed it for Mon and Karen, both of which, like Arakan or Rakhine, were incorporated by the British in Burma Proper, otherwise known as Ministerial Burma, unlike Shan, Chin, Kachin and Karenni which were separate entities-my remark.)  The most important however were the promises of the agreement. Sadly, these promises and essence are still in a submerged state.

U Shwe Min, Lisu National Development Party (LNDP)
To establish a Lisu Self Administered Zone in Kachin State, made up of 5 townships: Khaolam Phu, Sawlaw, Chipwe, Machanbaw and Putao.

Note: There are 18 townships in Kachin State
Dr Manam Tuja, Kachin State Democratic Party
Had we not trusted Gen Aung San's promise made on 28 November 1946 in Myitkyina, we would not have decided to join the 1947 Panglong Conference.

Note: He spoke for 16 minutes, prompting MCs to warn him several times.

U Yan Kyaw, Wa Democratic party (WDP)
To re-recognize the original Wa State as evidenced by the world and Myanmar maps.

Note:   1. An old map designated the Wa dominated areas as "Unfederated Wa States," meaning the Wa principalities unlike Shan principalities, were not formed into a federation. They became part of Shan State via the 1947 constitution.
           
2. Meanwhile the United Wa State Army (UWSA) representatives, led by a liaison officer from Tachilek, left in a huff after being "discriminately treated" by the conference organizers. Their left behind paper recommends that a people with a population of 100,000 should be entitled to a Self Administered Zone (SAZ), those with 200,000 a Self Administered Division (SAD) and 300,000 upwards a state.
           
3.Another Wa party, the Wa National Unity Party is to demand 10 townships in eastern Shan State including Kengtung to be included in the new Wa State.

U Yawthat (Joseph), Lahu National Development Party
To establish a Lahu self Administered Zone (SAZ).

(After his ten minutes were over, he tried to say a few more words. But the MCs had got wise. They just shut down his speaker forcing him to stop his speech mid air, bow down and leave the podium.)

Note    According to Naypyitaw, at least two adjoining townships with an ethnicity in each more than 50% of its population are eligible to form an SAZ. The Lahus claim to be the majority in two townships, which are separate from each other.

 The National Democratic Alliance Army (NDAA) meanwhile calls for the establishment of an Akha SAZ. But they are facing two problems: one, Akha are not the majority in its area, and, two, it holds almost complete sway over one township (Mongla), but only part of each of two adjoining townships.

According to one government source, Naypyitaw negotiators are willing to make an exception for the NDAA, as Mongla is part of the projected Asian Highway.

The day concludes with a closing remark by the day's chair, Padoh Kwe Htoo Win of KNU. He quotes the NCA's Chapter One which pledges to "establish a union based on the principles of democracy and federalism in accordance with the outcomes of political dialogue and the spirit of Panglong, that fully guarantees democratic rights, national equality and the right to self-determination of the basis of liberty, equality and justice while upholding the principles of non-disintegration of the union, non-disintegration of national solidarity and perpetuation of national sovereignty."

Listening to him, a thought, unthought, comes to my mind, "Gosh! He must have learned it by rote."

The remark of the day is made by a non-Shan:
It looks like all the 55 townships of Shan State will be gone if the government agrees to it. There will nothing left for the Shans, let alone us. Maybe we should plan on demanding our own land in the Burman regions or other states.

Almost forgot to tell you. Today the RCSS speaker Lt-Col Sai Ngeun drops a nuclear bombshell by accusing the conference of not adhering to the equal status principle. What he says isn't in the written text and takes a lot of courage to point out the issue in question: the omission of military ranks for the EAO speakers, when their names are read out. "That is not equal. If there is no equality even in such a small matter, how can we expect equality in federalism?" he asks.

(The result is that the ranks of the EAO speakers on the remaining days are "reinstated" by the conference. And as to be expected, the cocky little colonel, who's a native of Mongpulong, Mongpiang township, becomes a hero among EAOs overnight.)
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