NCA 11th Anniversary Ceremony held

THE 11th Anniversary Ceremony of the Nation­wide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) was held yesterday morning at the Horizon Lake View Hotel in Nay Pyi Taw, with President U Min Aung Hlaing of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar delivering an opening address via a vid­eo message. (The Presi­dent’s opening address is published separately.)

Union Minister for De­fence NSPNC Chairman Lt-Gen Yar Pyae delivered remarks marking the 11th anniversary of the NCA.

A video clip summa­rizing the peace efforts of successive governments and ongoing endeavours to achieve sustainable and lasting peace following the signing of the NCA was then screened.

Representatives of China, India and Thailand who witnessed the original signing of the NCA sub­sequently delivered com­memorative messages via video.

Commemorative re­marks were also delivered by peace process contrib­utors and NCA witnesses, including Kayin ethnic leader Saw Mutu Sae Poe, retired Union Minister and former Vice-Chairman of the Union Peacemaking Work Committee (UPWC) U Aung Min, who heads the NSPNC Advisory Group, and retired Union Min­ister and former UPWC Vice-Chairman U Thein Zaw, a member of the NSP­NC Advisory Group.

Leaders of NCA-signa­tory ethnic armed organi­zations, including the ALP, DKBA, KNU/KNLA-PC, LDU, NMSP and RCSS, subsequently delivered commemorative speeches marking the anniversary.

Following the speech­es, commemorative gifts marking the 11th anni­versary of the NCA were presented to individuals who had contributed to the signing of the agree­ment, its original signato­ries, key supporters of the peace process and leaders of ethnic armed organiza­tions. The ceremony con­cluded with a group photo session, followed by an official luncheon.

In the afternoon, the workshop themed “From Peace and Social Harmo­ny to Development”, held to commemorate the 11th anniversary of the Nation­wide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA), continued.

In his remarks, NSP­NC Chairman Lt-Gen Yar Pyae said the two-day workshop was being held under the theme “From Peace and Social Harmony to Development” to facil­itate substantive discus­sions on political issues. He explained that the first day’s discussions would focus on “Reviewing Ex­periences, Achievements and Challenges of the NCA to Identify Approaches for Future Peace Processes”. On the second day, partici­pants would be divided into two groups. Group 1 would discuss “Identifying and Studying Practical Ways to Collaborate for Peace, Stability and Social Har­mony in Conflict-Affected Areas,” while Group 2 would discuss “Identify­ing Interconnected Ap­proaches Between Peace, Regional Economic Devel­opment and Sustainable Livelihood Opportunities, and Effectively Delivering Humanitarian Assistance and Addressing Needs”. He encouraged partici­pants to engage in open, broad-based and informal discussions by sharing im­plementation experienc­es, achievements, lessons learned and different per­spectives. He emphasized that social harmony must be fostered in the Union, where diverse ethnic groups, languages, faiths and cultural traditions co­exist, to overcome suspi­cion, which he identified as a primary cause of conflict. He added that peace stake­holders needed to remain mindful of existing chal­lenges and potential future threats while strengthen­ing mutual trust and co­operation.

Afterwards, peace process contributors, representatives of ethnic armed organizations, del­egates from the political parties’ working group and other invitees attended a session on “Reviewing Ex­periences, Achievements and Challenges of the NCA to Identify Approaches for Future Peace Processes.” The session was chaired by U Aung Naing Oo, with retired Lt-Gen Khin Zaw Oo, U Hla Maung Shwe and Sao Sai Ngin of the Res­toration Council of Shan State (RCSS) serving as lead discussants.

During the session, participants openly ex­changed views on lessons learned from implement­ing the peace process in accordance with the NCA, preserving the agreement’s essence and fundamental principles while conduct­ing negotiations in line with current conditions, build­ing trust through reliable and mutually accepted channels to foster good re­lationships among diverse stakeholders, and conduct­ing political dialogue to re­build trust.

Following the discus­sions, the workshop chair­man delivered a concluding review, bringing the first day’s proceedings to a close. The second day of the workshop is scheduled to continue on 16 October.

MNA/TH

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