29 May 2017•Update: 30 May 2017
By Kyaw Ye Lynn
YANGON, Myanmar
A peace conference to end decades of ethnic conflict in Myanmar ended Monday without reaching a major agreement between the government and rebels, state-run TV reported.
The six-day summit in capital Nay Pyi Taw stumbled over rebels’ calls for greater autonomy amid fears federalism could lead to the break up of the country.
Representatives from the government, rebel groups, parliament and political parties signed an agreement on 37 of 45 proposed federal principles as part of the Union Peace Accord on Monday.
However, presidential spokesman Zaw Htay said a deal on individual states’ constitutions and self-determination could not be reached unless rebel groups pledged “non-secession from the union”.
“As the issues are set to be discussed in package, we could not go further without any agreement on non-secession,” he told reporters at the end of the conference.
An alliance of seven major rebel groups, including three previously banned from joining the peace talks, walked out of negotiations on Saturday after they were not allowed to present their proposals.
The conflicts, which mostly affect areas in northern Kachin, northeastern Shan and western Rakhine states, have been ongoing since independence in 1948.
Ethnic groups want a new federal constitution promising autonomy that could be put to a referendum. Myanmar’s earlier federal constitution was replaced by military rule after a 1962 coup.
The violence in the northeast has recently peaked to levels comparable to the fierce fighting of the 1980s. Tens of thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes.
State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi described the agreement on 37 principles as a significant step towards peace, national reconciliation and a democratic federal union.
“Nation-building is an unending process,” she said in a statement posted on her office’s Facebook page. “As we complete one stage, we have to start on the next one.
“I would like to urge all organizations and individuals that that are not yet participating in this conference to join us.”
