Shan rebel leader seeks peaceful ways with guns ready

No.04 - 5/2007
3 May 2007
Politics
 
Shan rebel leader seeks peaceful ways with guns ready
 
One should not give up hoping for the best when it comes to resolving by peaceful means Burma's long standing problems, but one should also be prepared against the worst to defend one's rights by military means, said Col Yawdserk, leader of the Shan State Army (SSA) "South" yesterday.
 
"Hkun Tun Oo (leader of the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy-SNLD) didn't have a military force," the 50-year old Yawdserk told the latest batch of fighters who recently completed their basic course. "He was only seeking a peaceful solution that would keep the country unified. He was nevertheless accused of trying to destroy the union and shamelessly convicted."
 

                                                              ^{Photo:www.taifreedom.com}
Hkun Tun Oo and 8 of his colleague were detained and sentenced to long term imprisonment from 79-106 years in 2005. One of them, Math Myint Than, died on 2 May 2006.
 
"We must at all times be ready to resolve them by an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth means," he added.
 
No further details about the ceremony yesterday was found in the SSA's website in Shan, www.taifreedom.com.
 
The SSA South is the only armed opposition "with some teeth" that Burma's military junta has refused to negotiate with. It has however held several talks with two other groups: Karen National Union (KNU) and Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP), though no significant progress has been reported. The groups have charged Burma's ruling military of trying to destroy them by employing divide and conquer as well as 'camel in the Arab's tent' tactics.