Seven signatories of Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) are pursuing its policy to be able to organize all-inclusive political dialogue and to solve political problem in political means.
Developments in attempt to organize this dialogue, and challenges for this objective amid rising armed conflicts are explained in this interview.
TLT: Could you talk about the attempts of Peace Process Steering Team (PPST) to hold all-inclusive political dialogue?
PPST: The Year 2022 was set for Peace Year. The year was over and we are reviewing our efforts whether it was to secure peace or to commence peace. Until 2023, our country is still far away from peace. However, PPST is keeping on its policy. It was comprised with 10 signatories of Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement for holding political dialogues. At present, we have some changes from 10 signatories to 7+3 structure. Despite this changing formation, we do not reduce our peace-making efforts.
Although it was labeled as either the coup or power control on 1 February 2021, our efforts on peace dialogue seemed struck in limbo at present. As per statement issued after the summit in early April 2022, PPST decided to maintain its policy to hold political dialogue with relevant stakeholders to overcome the current political crisis in Myanmar.
Without following NCA’s strict mechanism, we have more flexible approach to work on three essential points of NCA—to solve political crisis through political dialogue, to hold all-inclusive and meaningful political dialogue, and to protect civilians while providing them humanitarian assistance.
TLT: What are the challenges for holding these dialogues as clashes are intensifying and possibility of political dialogue is lessening?
PPST: Frankly to say, we are now facing severe crisis which we never experienced in the past over 70 years since the independence of our country. The crisis is likely to worsen more and more. We confess that we have substantial difficulties to implement our objectives. However, we believe that all-inclusive political dialogue is the only way for least impacts on our people in solving the existing problems. So, we are going on straight forward to our destination. However, we need to try to have a common sense on peace’. The PPST aims to secure peace for all our ethnic groups and regions in the Union.
Actually, we expect peace that is a precious heritage for our posterity. Establishment of a federal democracy Union is the only way for Union peace which can only be achieved through the inclusive dialogue of federal forces and democratic forces to overcome the existing political crisis. In doing so, we are trying hard in our best.
TLT: What has PPST prepared to continue amid intensifying armed clashes?
PPST: I have mentioned above that we are facing severe crisis that we never experienced before. There are some diverse views among different stakeholders. We need to understand this reality. Our advantage is that we have a common destination to secure Union peace through a federal democracy Union. However, our management and system would vary from each other under the existing political scenario despite having the common objective and the same destination. We must accept this reality.
Although we have different approaches to the Union peace and federal democracy Union, we would surely create a common scenario in a certain period. We are focusing to develop a mechanism which can solve political problem through political means despite the existing challenges
