Myanmar’s two major anti-regime umbrella organizations have categorically rejected any compromise in their political goal of eradicating the military dictatorship and establishing a federal democratic union, following the junta’s recent attempts to split the country’s anti-regime movement.
In a joint statement laying out the “common position” of anti-regime organizations on Sunday, the country’s parallel National Unity Government (NUG) and its advisory body, the National Unity Consultative Council (NUCC), stressed that the ultimate goal of their fight against the junta “is not mere regime change” but the establishment of a federal union.
“To achieve the ultimate goal [building a federal union], we strongly believe that it’s necessary not only to wipe out the military dictatorship but the military’s involvement in the country’s politics and its tendency to stage coups,” it said.
The NUG was formed by elected lawmakers from the ousted National League for Democracy (NLD) government and their ethnic allies in the wake of the military takeover in 2021 with a vision of building a federal democratic union in Myanmar after rooting out the military dictatorship. Its armed wing, the network of People’s Defense Force groups (PDFs), has been waging war—alongside some ethnic armed organizations (EAOs)—against the regime across the country. Many people in Myanmar consider the NUG their legitimate government and the PDF groups as their army.
The NUCC is a coalition council that defines the NUG’s overall objectives and strategy. Its members include the NUG’s parliamentary wing, the Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH), some of Myanmar’s established EAOs, ethnic political parties and civil society organizations, among others.
The statement from the NUG and NUCC follows disinformation campaigns launched by the regime last month claiming that the country’s ousted and detained popular leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi doesn’t support the NUG and its associates in their fight against the regime. As the leader of the NLD government ousted by the military coup in 2021, she has been detained by the regime since the first day of the takeover.
Rumors have also been circulating that a military-guided transitional government would be formed under the leadership of some former military generals to pave the way for a political “dialogue” between the regime and opposition forces. Both the disinformation campaigns and the rumors of a transitional government emerged after Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s meeting with Thai Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai in July. While it is still not known exactly what she said during the meeting, Don told the media that she encouraged dialogue.
Observers see the campaigns and the speculation about a transitional government as the junta’s attempt to drive a wedge between Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and anti-regime resistance stakeholders, including the NUG and most Myanmar people, who are determined to topple the military dictatorship by any means necessary. Daw Zin Mar Aung, the NUG’s foreign minister, told The Irrawaddy that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi would always stand with the people as she has promised, and offered a reminder that the popular leader is also the State Counselor of the NUG.
Against this backdrop, the NUG and NUCC said in their statement Sunday: “We embrace and agree to these goals [to establish a federal union] and categorically reject any and all political moves that should deviate us from the vision and values we have determined for a new era and a new system.”
They added that they will mandate and implement transitional justice mechanisms to address human rights violations and war crimes committed not only by the current regime but also previous regimes, and their atrocities against ethnic nationalities, in order to prevent further such violations.
The statement described the NUG and NUCC’s vision of establishing a “Federal Union Army” comprising various ethnic nationalities to defend against external threats. The army would be unconditionally under the control of a civilian government.
They also pledged to continue their fight “without turning back… hand-in-hand with the people of all ethnic groups across the country” and “fully guaranteeing political processes towards building a federal democratic union, and with collective leadership and collective responsibility on the basis of equality, until we have achieved our ultimate goal.”
Padoh Saw Taw Nee, the external affairs chief of the Karen National Union (KNU), one of Myanmar’s oldest and most powerful ethnic armed groups, said the NUG and NUCC’s stand is the same as the KNU’s when it comes to toppling the dictatorship, according to Karen National Media. The KNU’s armed wings, the Karen National Liberation Army and the Karen National Defense Organization, are fighting alongside the NUG’s PDFs.
“Our view is clear. Any kind of dictatorship, including military, must be wiped out from our country,” he said.
