Col Aung Thu orderes the SSPP/SSA to withdraw from Salween river
The Shan State Minister of Border Affairs
and Security, Col Aung Tu has written a letter to the Shan
State Progress Party/Shan State Army (a.k.a Shan State Army-North or SSA-N) to withdraw its troops and camps from west
of the Salween river, near areas under the control of the United Wa State
Army.
On October 9th , 2014 a letter
signed by the Minister of Border Affairs and Security Col Aung Tu was sent,
telling the SSPP/SSA to withdraw its troops and bases from the areas of Kun
Parng Kun Kone, Nam Si Zeng and Loi-lang in Murng Kao tract, Tangyan township,
northern Shan State, to the west of the Nam Pang river.
“They, the Myanmar army, have accused our
troops of trespassing into the area of Loi-lang and Nam Si Zeng. This is a
shameless accusation. It was the Burma Army which broke the 1947 Panglong Agreement
and claimed that they had come to Shan State to help the Shans drive out the
Kuomintang and since then the Burma Army has refused to leave Shan State. Therefore,
if they invade we will use every means to defend our territories. This is our
mother-land,” said one of the SSPP/SSA commanders at the frontline.
The Burma Army insisted that they had to
use force and conduct their recent offensive because the SSPP/SSA had refused
to withdraw their troops from the Ta Pha Saung base, into which they had
“trespassed.” However, even after the SSPP/SSA had already withdrawn their
troops from Ta Pha Saung, the Burma army also attacked other of SSPP/SSA bases,
including Nam Put, Kong Mark Hin Tarn, Kong Mike Nyaung, Kong Mak Mong Lao,
Kong Sao Merng, from which they had not been asked to withdraw.
“This has the potential to ruin the peace
process. We have heard that there could be more fighting in the areas along the
west of the Salween River. Whether the nationwide ceasefire agreement is signed
or not, it will make no difference. Though we have been trying to deal via the negotiation
table, they will continue giving us military pressure like this,”said an
unnamed SSPP/SSA central committee officer.
The Shan
State Progress Party/Shan State Army signed a ceasefire with Naypyitaw on
January 28, 2012 at the union level.
Tags: News, War
