“All armed ethnic organizations must sign the NCA,” said the Commander-in-Chief, adding that it should be assumed that continued ignoring of this fact amounts to resisting the federal Union which people aspire to, opposing democracy, having desire for armed ‘anarchy’, and disregarding the interests of the Union and its people.”

But never has he raised the questions below and also answered them properly.

• The non-signatory Ethnic Armed Organizations (EAOs) repeatedly said that the supposed to be a collectively owned Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) draft was hijacked by the Thein Sein regime, made the agreement its own and invited all the EAOs to sign it on 15 October 2015.
• The non-signatory EAOs had asked for more time to review and made amendments before agreeing on the NCA draft, which Thein Sein has hijacked and declare as a finalized version that all have already agreed. But the fact is the presently used NCA is a semi-finish version from the point of non-signatories, which the Tatmadaw and government insist to be the final one.
• The United Nationalities Federal Council’s (UNFC) 9-point proposal has touched on all the excluding points to be included in the presently used NCA version, but repeatedly been denied or pushed aside, demanding only to sign the NCA without questions asked. It is a bullying tactics and not an accommodating approach that cater to co-ownership of the NCA document for further implementation.

• So far as the Panghsang alliance or Federal Political Negotiation and Consultative Committee (FPNCC), it is by and large quite agreeable to the UNFC’s 9-point proposal.

Thus the question arises as to why the Commander-in-Chief and the government are not flexible and accommodating to the non-signatory EAOs’ proposal and make the peace process possible, but insisted upon only signing the present version NCA, as if it is written on the stone and cannot be altered.

The Commander-in-Chief and the government owe the non-signatories an explanation to the above questions posed and not just barking out orders and ultimatum to sign or else meet the consequence of being crushed or attacked.

This is definitely not the way to achieve reconciliation and restore peace in the country, but just to keep the war flames on and continued suffering of the people, especially for those within the ethnic states where the Tatmadaw is waging clearance operations and military offensives.

Link to the story: KNU urges nonviolent solution to Rakhine crisis on ceasefire anniversary