Wa leader again refuses to meet MAS Chief

Tuesday, 09 February 2010 20:02 Phanida

Chiang Mai (Mizzima) – The United Wa State Party (UWSP) Chairman Bao Yuxiang has again refused to meet with the junta's Military Affairs Security (MAS) Chief Lt. Gen. Ye Myint to discuss the dictatorship's desire to turn the UWSP into a Border Guard Force (BGF).

This is the second time that Chairman Bao Yuxiang has snubbed the MAS Chief. Chairman Bao Yuxiang also refused to meet with Lt. Gen. Ye Myint in early January when the latter made the same request.

According to Sino-Burma border based Burmese analyst Aung Kyaw Zaw the UWSP Chairman cited his poor health when he declined the MAS Chief's most recent invitation issued over the phone earlier this month.

"Lt. Gen. Ye Myint from Naypyitaw informed Wa Chairman Bao Yuxiang on the 2nd of this month of his desire to meet in Lashio on the 6th of this month. But the Wa Chairman replied that he could not come to Lashio as his health is poor but he instead welcomed him to come to him if he can", Aung Kyaw Zaw told Mizzima.

A junta delegation led by Lt. Gen. Ye Myint and a Wa delegation led by UWSP Vice-Chairman Xio Miliang met and discussed the Border Guard Force issue in November last year but no agreement was reached.

Mizzima has also learned that the UWSP will continue to follow their 9-points proposal which they presented to the junta at last November's meeting. The proposal calls for the Wa to maintain control of the Wa Hong and Pan Kham districts located near Thailand which the Burmese military wants the UWSP to relinquish.

According to Aung Kyaw Zaw, Wa State TV based at the UWSP headquarters is still regularly broadcasting Chairman's Bao Yuxiang speech in which he said that his forces were ready to respond to a possible invasion by the Burmese army.

In April of last year the junta proposed that all ethnic armed ceasefire groups transform their forces into border guard units and declared the end of 2009 as the deadline for all the groups to respond. Like the UWSP the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), Mongla or Shan State (East) Special Region No. 4 and New Mon State Party (NMSP) have also all missed this deadline.

The United Wa State Army (UWSA) was created following the internal collapse of the Communist Party of Burma forces in 1989. The UWSA reached a ceasefire agreement with the Burmese regime shortly afterwards.