When people talks about Shan unity, it is mostly centered on the two Shan armies of Shan State Progress Party (SSPP) and Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS), although the rivalry of Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD) and Shan and Nationalities Democratic Party (SNDP) headed by Sai Nyunt Lwin and Sai Aik Pao respectively were also touched at to a certain extent.

But there has been no doubt that SNLD represents the Shan/Tai electorates in all past national general elections of 1990 and 2020 wining most of the votes in Shan State and thus SNDP is no rival in any sense of the words in political arena.

However, since military might is dominant in today’s political landscape, it is quite natural that people put more emphasizes on the two Shan armies when touching the issue of Shan unity.

Very recently, a piece of announcement in Shan language from RCSS military command has been making the rounds quite widely in social media where Shan unity is concerned.

In an announcement directive, translated by this writer, to all its leaders and commanders of all its units, dated May 14 from RCSS Defense Office, the subject line writes:

“(Troops) must stop plans and attacks on SSPP for a period of 10 days.”

The announcement main message is as follows:-

• “According to the directive and prevailing situation, (troops) must totally stop and maintain ceasefire from May 16 to 25 May 2025 for 10 days.”
• “1. Because Shan Revolutionary Day is approaching and another factor that we are going to dine and get together with leaders from various places, during this 10 days troops will have to stay put in their positions and must not go about with attacks except for self-defense.”
• “2. If the deteriorated situation of Shan State is not talked and discussed with each other our people will have to suffer for a long time in the future. That is why during this 68th Shan Revolutionary Day RCSS Chairman General Yawd Serk has planned to meet and discuss with the people and the two armed organizations.”

Besides, the letter has been sent to the SSPP.

“I think the two Shan armies should be considerate with the people as we want to rely on them. They are not participating in fighting the dictatorship and their fighting against each other which we want them to stop,” said a local from Lashio to SHAN regarding the issue.

The two Shan armies were at each others throats starting 2018.

In 2015 the RCSS intruded into areas claimed by the SSPP and Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) in northern Shan State, but in 2021 it was pushed back with overwhelming firepower by their combined forces, aided by the United Wa State Army (UWSA). It is believed that China also wanted the RCSS out of northern Shan State and gave indirect orders to expel its troops from that territory.

On 29 November 2023, three representatives from SSPP and four from RCSS held a meeting and agreed to a formal ceasefire, due to the repeated urging of Shan Sangha and the people.

But in less than a year the conflict resume which lasted until today.

Thus, this is a sort of another attempt to revive the Shan unity talk by RCSS leader and whether this is undertaken together with the consent of the SSPP is not quite clear.

Meanwhile, the SSPP 8 bases in northern Shan State have been attacked by the Kokang or Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) at whose directive it is not clear. Also maybe it is doing it on its own initiative to impress China to secure the border trade routes, or solely for its own territorial expansion urge and economic incentive. Nobody knows for sure.

Barely has the peace overtures started to become public, news are coming out that the RCSS has been attacking the SSPP positions.

Either way, the fact that the Shan people needs to get their act together is long overdue, especially when the TNLA and MNDAA are moving all over northern Shan State and riding roughshod on the majority Shan population.

It should be noted, according to the 2014 population census the Palaung or Ta’ang has a population of 332149, with 6.26%. The Kokang has a population of 265536, with 5.01%.

The Shan/Tai in contrast has a population of 1883723, with 35.51% for the whole Shan State.

Both the Shan armies have the responsibility to discharge their duty to protect not only the Shan/Tai people but the whole population of Shan State, as they have vowed time and again to do from the very beginning of the revolution.

It won’t do for the two Shan armies good to be at each others throats, not undertaking to dislodge the main obstacle of military dictatorship system like the rest of the anti-junta ethnic-democratic alliance forces countrywide.

Hopefully, the RCSS latest initiative will ring the bell and push the Shan armies to do some earnest soul-searching with an eye on Shan/Tai unity, unity of all ethnic groups within Shan State and finally solidarity with all other ethnic nationalities countrywide, to fulfill the aspirations of federal democratic union for the country and the people.