Ethnic Armed Groups in Myanmar Endorse The Nippon Foundation’s Peace, Humanitarian Initiatives: Joint Statement (1)
The Nippon Foundation has provided 64,000 bags of rice for distribution in areas controlled by seven ethnic armed organizations (EAOs) in Myanmar that are signatories to the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) over the past year, according to a statement issued by the NCA signatory Ethnic Armed Resistance Organizations (NCA-S EAO) in early July.
The statement as reported by media outlets in Myanmar also said the foundation will continue to distribute rice to EAOs in those areas during the 2023-24 fiscal year.
“We fully support The Nippon Foundation and its chairman (Yohei) Sasakawa in the interest of ethnic people suffering from armed conflicts, and we here pledge to cooperate with him,” the EAOs statement said.
In addition, the media outlets reported that the NCA-S EAOs “expressed their condemnation towards some so-called activists targeting Yohei Sasakawa and The Nippon Foundation, who are persistently engaged in providing aid to ethnic war refugees, noting that these efforts were initiated during previous governments.”
Politician U Pe Than was quoted by the Development Media Group (MDG) based in the western Myanmar state of Rakhine as saying: “The Nippon Foundation is an intermediary between the junta and EAOs. I think it has provided food supplies as a way of showing support for the peace process between the regime and the seven EAOs.”
The EAOs said the foundation has provided humanitarian assistance to the ethnic communities in the conflict-stricken nation for decades by undertaking new town projects, constructing hospitals and classrooms in those regions.
Since I took up the post of Special Envoy of the Government of Japan for National Reconciliation in Myanmar in 2013, I have worked tirelessly to mediate a ceasefire between the government, the military and about 20 EAOs, visiting the country and the region about 130 times.
Up until the military takeover in February 2021, I had helped the Myanmar government and the military sign NCAs with 10 EAOs, while negotiations with the remaining 10 EAOs had as yet failed to produce tangible progress.
The Myanmar media reports said six EAOs, the Arakan Liberation Party (ALP), Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA), Karen National Union/Karen National Liberation Army－Peace Council (KNU/KNLA-PC), Lahu Democratic Union (LDU), Pa-O National Liberation Army (PNLO) and New Mon State Party (NMSP), have collectively signed the statement of the NCA-S EAOs.
“Given our longstanding collaboration with The Nippon Foundation, we commonly refer to the statement as representing all seven NCA-S EAOs, even though only six EAOs have officially signed it due to the pending decision of the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS). It remains uncertain (as of July 5 when the statement was issued) whether the RCSS will join us later or release a separate statement,” said Colonel Khun Okkar, a spokesman for the group.
Speaking to Karen News, Colonel Saw Sein Win, the adjutant general of DKBA, emphasized the urgent necessity of aid for the displaced individuals who have been forced to leave their homes in Karen State due to the ongoing conflict, highlighting the significant challenges they face in their daily lives.
“I firmly believe that engaging in humanitarian work is a crucial step towards achieving stability and peace within our nation. It is imperative that we intensify our efforts to support such initiatives and provide assistance to our communities,” he said.
(To be continued)