Commander-in-Chief's failed-decision or maintaining pre-concieved idea of top-dog position
It
is unfortunate that due to some rumors and unconfirmed news, the Commander-in-Chief
Min Aung Hlaing has decided to launch a large scale operation against the Shan
State Progress Party/Shan State Army (SSPP/SSA).
According
to the interview given to VOA, Sai Nyunt Lwin, General Secretary of the Shan
Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD), on 5 October, said: “The government
publicized that it has to respond to the SSA ambush. As far as we know,
according to the news, the two military commands with five military columns
made a concerted, two pronged, operation. We analyze it and are concerned for
the peace process. That's why five organizations attending the meeting have
sent a petition to the President to help stop the offensive.”
A
DVB report, on 6 October, that Hkun Htun Oo, within the capacity of Shan State
Joint Action Committee (SSJAC) and Chairman of the United Nationalities
Alliance (UNA), in response to the government's suspicion on UNFC dragging the
peace process, said: “ The main point is that Union Peacemaking Work Committee (UPWC)
explaining on what points still could not be agreed with the United
Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC); for example, the suspicion of
Commander-in-Chief and wrong information he got, before he left for Japan.
According to it the UNFC, UNA and NLD were determined and agreed to drag the
signing of ceasefire agreement beyond 2015 and until 2016. They were asking
whether this information is false or correct. Since the UNA, NLD and UNFC have never
met, it is clear this is false information.”
The
tragedy is that people have to die or get wounded, combatants as well as civilians,
because of such poorly informed decision. Making hasty decision according to
one's spontaneous mood has no place in the important process of political
settlement. Again, if this is just an unwise action based on unconfirmed rumors,
the USDP-military regime needs to rethink and reassess its decision-making
pattern. But if the recent offensive in Shan State is just a continuation of
maintaining its top-dog position politically and militarily, there is no need
to go on with this sham peace talks. For its ultimate aim is just to reach a
“negotiated surrender” and not projecting at achieving a “level playing field”,
leading to the atmosphere of equality, democracy and rights of
self-determination for all ethnic groups, big or small.
The contributor is ex-General
Secretary of the dormant Shan Democratic Union (SDU) — Editor
Tags: Opinion
