Junta boss calls for political solutions to ongoing armed conflicts

By Admin 05 Dec 2023

DMG Newsroom
5 December 2023, Sittwe

Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing suggested at a cabinet meeting of his regime on Monday that ongoing armed conflicts across the country should be resolved with political solutions.

Min Aung Hlaing’s call for a political solution comes at a time when the regime has lost some 300 outposts in Kachin, Shan, Karenni (Kayah), Chin, Arakan and Mon states, as well as Sagaing, Magwe and Tanintharyi regions, over the past month, with hundreds of soldiers having surrendered since Operation 1027 was launched in late October.

“If armed groups persevere with their mistakes, only local populations will suffer the consequences. So, they should have sympathy for civilians who are bearing the brunt of the fighting. [Armed groups] should not persevere with their mistakes, and there is a need to find political solutions,” said Min Aung Hlaing.

He did not clarify how the armed conflicts would be solved politically. He said his regime would uphold the military-drafted 2008 Constitution and the ‘three main national causes,’ referring to the military’s long-held political ideology — non-disintegration of the union; non-disintegration of national solidarity; and perpetuation of sovereignty — and strive to build a Union based on democracy and federalism.

In his statement, Min Aung Hlaing blamed the Arakan Army and Karenni Nationalities Defense Force in particular.

Politician U Pe Than said: “It [the military regime] is now proposing political dialogue. But it had refused political dialogue and staged a coup by taking advantage of the 2008 Constitution, which was designed to secure the military’s indefinite grip on power. If the proposed dialogue is to be held under the 2008 Constitution, the regime can easily manipulate it. No ethnic groups will accept that.”

Any potential dialogue would be unrealistic unless a new constitution accepted by all ethnic groups is in place, U Pe Than added.

The regime has suffered heavy losses and its administration is collapsing in many parts of the country since the Brotherhood Alliance launched a large-scale offensive known as Operation 1027 in late October. The regime has been targeting civilians, and civilian casualties are rising daily.

“No matter where you live, it is not safe. The regime can make attacks anytime,” said a resident in Arakan State.