14 November 2012
Dear Mr. President
I would like to congratulate you on winning your second term in office and wish you every success in steering your country forward.
I was pleased to hear that you are going to visit Burma and hope you have a pleasant and fruitful trip. As a person who has been involved in the county’s political processes since 1988 I would like to share some of my thoughts with you in relation to how the problems that are still affecting the country can be addressed.
Burma is a multi-ethnic country, consisting of many ethnic groups. For years ethnic conflict has played a major part in the country’s political landscape and while the government has implemented a number of reforms it has still failed to address the major ethnic issues. While we welcome the number of ceasefire agreements made – the country cannot move forward until a substantive political dialogue is held between all ethnic stakeholders and the Government.
The Ethnic Nationalities Council is a state based political organization formed in 2001 to encourage political dialogue between ethnic actors and all other relevant parties. Consequently, I would like to encourage you to consider ethnic issues while on your trip and would kindly request you to meet with ethnic leaders, both inside and outside the country, and consider their grievances.
Most Respectfully
Dr. Lian H. Sakhong
Chairman
Ethnic Nationalities Council – Union of Burma
E-mail: lian.sakhong@burmaethnicstudies.net
Letter to President Obama from ENC Chairman.pdf