NMSP cease-fire comes to an end [this title does not reflect the content – OBL]

By Chan Mon, Independent Mon News Agency

June 30

New Mon State Party (NMSP), a Mon ethnic armed cease-fire group and Burmese military Southeast Region Commander held 10th anniversary of June 29, 1995 cease-fire agreement in well known hotel, Ngwe Moe Hotel, which is in the capital of Mon State, Moulmein, Southern Burma.

Both sides presented what were their plans and what their political agendas, but no decision was made and the ceremony just finished with no sense, NMSP senior leader in Moulmein exposed his unsatisfied feeling.

NMSP Vice Chairman presented that NMSP is dealing with the political problems in Burma by peaceful means along with many other non-Burman ethnic nationalities toward the military government in front of a crowd of about 100 people that comprised of Mon Community leaders, some 1990 election MPs, the senior commanders from South-East Military Command. But Deputy Military Southeast Commander Col. Myo Hla did not explain and made any positive or negative response toward the NMSP leader's presentation. He just presented that the military regime has strong willingness for the development of nationality race inhabited in the country by constructing roads, bridges and dams for them. No word comes out on the agenda solving political problem in Burma which is not much related to development projects in the community.

"The regime did not follow the promise what they have given, they are acting on different from what they have said. They did not really implement the development program for ethnic people and agree on the rights of self-determination," the NMSP senior leader who in-charge in a NMSP's Moulmein office who closely engage with the regime's authorities explained.

NMSP will maintain cease-fire agreement and will join hand with other ethnic nationality, keep struggle for solving political problem by means of “Tripartite Politic Dialogue” adopted by United Nations’ General Assembly that will include the military regime SPDC, the democratic opposition parties especially National League for Democracy (NLD) and ethnic nationalities political parties from Shan, Mon, Arakan…said NMSP President Nai Htaw Mon during interview with him.

"It is clear that the military regime did not want to have tripartite dialogue. Since NMSP leaders met former Prime Minister Gen-Khin Nyunt for cease-fire agreement in 1995, Gen Khin Nyunt already told they can solve political problem only the military regime and ethnic people, without NLD," analyzed Nai Suthorn, General Secretary of Mon Unity League, an umbrella Mon civil society organization in Thailand.

NMSP joined military National Convention (NC), led by former Prime Minister that started on May 17, 2004 along with other ethnic cease-fire groups in order to propose the political demand of ethnic nationalities and to have greater autonomy for them in drafting constitution. However, the NMSP and others cease-fire group were forced to discuss the draft constitution that has been drawn.

In the drafted constitution, the Burmese Army set the clear plan to grip power and it does not provide any basic principles for democratic reform.

NMSP and other ethnic cease-fire groups proposed for the 'separation of power' between the central government and State government. All of the proposed points were denied by the regime's national convening committee.

"Such power sharing points were denied. The point cease-fire groups submitted seemed not so hard to the regime. But no compromise by the regime and they were flatly denied. No political problem was solved in 10 years. So now, what the NMSP needs to do and what should to adopt the political agendas," Nai Suthorn, he exposed his view.

In the second part of National Convention, there were no activities allowed for submitting opinion view on drafted constitution, according to NMSP member who attended the NC.

NMSP and Mon community worried that the military will force NMSP to surrender like other ethnic cease-fire group, Shan and Pa-laung after the second part of NC.

Mon Community strongly shocked and worried if the NMSP is going to surrender with a recent rumor broke out from Mon State and to the broad. Some senior monks called and met NMSP top leaders and questioned them whether the NMSP going to surrender or not.

"NMSP should not surrender. If they surrender, they should go alone.Please don't take our (the Mon people) arms. The arm were bought with our money and people money," an Abbot in Thailand who has been supporting NMSP said.

NMSP denied the rumor and according to NMSP's General Secretary, he confirmed that NMSP will not surrender to the regime when he talked to press.

However, Mon National Council from Australia which is formed with the retired NMSP Central Committee members wrote a letter to NMSP not to surrender. The Mon people had experience of suffering after Mon People Front (MPF) surrendered to U Nu's government in 1958. After 1962, many Mon organizations were abolished, Mon monk were barred to have exams on Buddhism in Mon language and Mon communities were treated cruelly.

"If NMSP surrender again, how the Mon people feel and will be treated. Even the NMSP is not surrendered, the people has faced many problems created by Burmese Army and military government now. Thousand acres of farmlands belonged to the Mon people were confiscated for "Position Welfare" to block NMSP and MNLA's activities if there is fighting resumed in Mon areas. Many Mon villagers are forced to work for Burmese Army's military bases.

"There is no improvement of human right condition if compares the before ceased-fire," Human Rights Foundation of Monland's Director Nai Kasauh Mon said. Some case like summary execution has been better. But sexual violations against women, conscription of forced labor and porters, and money extortion have been committed ed by Burmese soldiers in many places of Mon areas.

The NMSP and the military regime agreed to stop human rights violation such as killing, conscription of porter and forced labor and implementing development projects along the border such as opening schools and hospitals.

Soon after the cease-fire, the NMSP can widely conducted it's activities for the community development in the rural areas, such as opening Mon National School, setting the Mon fishing company and trading company. Human rights violations have been also decreased. But a couple years later, human rights violations started worsening. The NMSP fishing company was barred to not operate. The Mon schools were forced to close down. The cultivated farmlands, orchid and rubber plantations belonged to the Mon farmers were confiscated by Burmese Army. It encouraged Mon people to resume armed fighting against the regime. Many Mon people demanded NMSP to resume fighting as they could not tolerate human rights violations.

Some small Mon armed groups with no concrete political appeared and declared to fight against the Burmese Amy. The well-known group among them is led by Col-Pan Nyunt, an NMSP strategic commander, who split and formed Hongsarwatoi Restoration Party (HRP) with small number of arms in 2001.

In the next couple years, some NMSP leaders were arrested, barred for collecting traditional revolutionary fund, banned NMSP member not to travel outside of Mon State. After NMSP junior leader, Nai Yerk-Kha and other NMSP senior leader were arrested, many NMSP soldiers made complain to their leaders to decide something. But NMSP leaders have kept maintaining cease-fire agreement with a purpose they still can solve the political problems along with other ethnic armed groups.

Although Mon people wanted to have arms in a Mon political party for protection of their identity and properties, but the word in the speech given by the Deputy of Southeast Region Commander Col-Myo Hla, if 'you wanted peace, all of ethnic armed groups like you have to surrender' in the 10th Anniversary ceasefire made NMSP leaders and Mon community leaders upset and dissatisfied.

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