Ta’ang (Palaung) Leader’s Message to the International Community: ‘Come and See the Real Picture in Our Areas’

The Ta’ang, also known as Palaung, are one of Burma’s myriad ethnic groups who have been fighting for basic human rights and autonomy for decades. Despite the international enthusiasm over Burma’s reform process, the reality in Burma’s ethnic borderlands remains dire, and the Burmese military continues its brutal offensive against ethnic civilians. Tar Aik Bong joined the Ta’ang struggle in 1987, and is now the Chairperson of the Palaung State Liberation Front (PSLF), the Head of military commission of the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), as well as a member of the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC) council and Foreign Affairs Department. The PSLF/TNLA is one of the few prominent ethnic armed groups yet to sign a ceasefire with the Burmese government. The following is Tar Aik Bong’s message to the international community.

 

Tar Aik Bong: My message to international community

Currently the Burmese military has been increasing its troops inside Ta’ang areas in northern Shan State and intensified armed battles have broken out in Ta’ang areas since U Thein Sein became President in 2011 until now.

The Burmese government troops are not only extending its militarization in the region, but also the Burmese officials have confiscated farm land off local farmers for the construction of its military camps/bases and administrative buildings some with inadequate compensation and others with no compensation whatsoever. They committed various human rights abuses against our Ta’ang people such as conscripting for porters, forced labors, forced conscription of properties, extra judiciary arrests, killing, raping, forced marriage, using force labor on Burmese military farms and road construction. The whole situation makes Ta’ang people more vulnerable and echoes a lack of security under a lawless situation.

Most international communities do not see the contradiction between government policy and local on the ground realities. The government’s image abroad is good and gaining recognition with the easing and lifting of economic sanctions as a result of the ceasefire but for the ethnic armed groups, we are getting nothing except more and more government troops encroaching in their territories. The government hasn’t actually made any concrete steps towards withdrawing its army battalions from ethnic areas according to the points specified in their ceasefire agreements. What we see in the area is that instead of withdrawing or reducing their army, they are reinforcing and establishing their army camps more in territories and in armed conflict areas as well.

The major problem between the ethnic armed groups and Burmese military is the future country constitutional system. Ethnic armed groups have proposed a federal system and one army system under federal constitution, but the government and its military delegation disagreed on such a proposal and will continue to back a “one nation and one national armed force” system under 2008 constitution.

To get the approval of the people on 2008 constitution, the government wisely chose the right time; of cyclone Nargis hitting lower Burma. While tens of thousands of people from storm-hit delta areas were losing their lives, the government carried out a referendum. About 6 million people signed to amend some articles in 2008 constitution, the military-turned government and parliament neglected to amend on these main articles. The ethnic nationalities strongly remark that the 2008 constitution could not build the real Democratic Federal Union of Burma.

Genuine peace or lasting peace now depends on an honest and enlightened response from the Burmese government and it’s military. Without genuine peace, there will be meaningless outcomes or won’t be freedom, justice, and development in Burma as well as in ethnic states. Therefore, by helping us, I would like to urge and invite the international community, international media, and journalists to come and see the real picture in our areas, so that they can learn the real situation rather than only listening to the propaganda of the government.