In a ceremony today negotiators for the government of Myanmar and 16 ethnic rebel groups signed a ceasefire accord aimed at ending over sixty years of armed conflict. The agreement now has to be taken by negotiators to respective leaders of the rebel groups for final approval.
The Union Peace Working Committee (government’s negotiating team) and Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (representing the 16 ethnic armed groups) have agreed on the text of this Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) after over a year of negotiations involving seven rounds of talks.
Myanmar’s President Thein Sein who was in attendance at the ceremony today said that signing the agreement “opens the door for political dialogue and also further peace talks.”
UN Special Advisor Vijay Nambiar has called the agreement a “historic and significant achievement”. In a statement released today he said:
“The signing of an NCA is a first step towards a larger dialogue for settling the political and military issues that will pave the way for an inclusive and harmonious future for Myanmar.”
He also noted though that this was just a “first stage” and “Myanmar is still in a nascent stage of its transition.”
Notably, rebel groups from the Kokang region were absent from negotiations. The government declared martial law in the region in February when heavy fighting broke out between the government military and an ethnic Kokang militant group called the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA). The MDNAA is demanding autonomy for the Kokang, who are ethnically Han Chinese.
The leader of the 16 ethnic group negotiators, Naing Han Tha, told the Associated Foreign Press that negotiators plan to address the Kokang situation in future discussions.
The Kachin Independence Army's signing of the agreement is being hailed as a significant breakthrough for the government.
Only last week the Kachin Independence Organisation, the political wing of the KIA, said the government was still conducting an offensive against them.
"Given the fact that we were attacked whenever we held talks in the past, [the Myanmar military] appears to be taking advantage of the current talks in Yangon by invading our small bases. But, the attack hasn't seemed to disrupt the peace talks," spokesperson La Nan told the Voice of America.
Martial law declared in Kokang region of Myanmar (18 Feb 2015)
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