Peace talks offered to NUPA

Dhaka: The Burmese regime led by U Thein Sein has reportedly offered peace talks to the National United Party of Arakan, one of the Arakanese armed groups fighting against the Burmese regime for freedom and democracy in Arakan State.

National United Party of Arakan flag

U Aung Min, the minister of rail transportation and the leader of the union-level peacemaking group of the regime, said his group have already asked the NUPA to hold peace talks, reported the official Burmese newspaper “Kyemon” in its publication on the 16th of February.

He stated his government’s offer to negotiate with the NUPA while he was answering questions asked by U Nyan Linn, the representative of constituency no. 3 of Irrawaddy Division, on the 4th day of the third regular session of national parliament, which were concerned with peace procedures with the ethnic armed groups in the country.

He said to parliament that his group has already held peace talks and signed agreements with 9 of the 11 ethnic armed groups of the United Nationalities Federal Council and are connected to the two remaining groups of the council— the National United Party of Arakan and the Lahu Democratic Union— for peace talks.

The NUPA is one of the three Arakanese armed groups operating on the western Burmese border and was founded by the late Bo Raza, the Chief of the Arakan Army, after merging a number of Arakanese groups on the border. It was the strongest Arakanese armed group on the western frontier, but was weakened after Bo Raza and five other top leaders of the group were killed and some of its forces were jailed by India in 1998.

Posted in: NEWS,NEWS OF ARAKAN