http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=20791
The New Mon State Party (NMSP), an ethnic cease-fire group in southern Burma, will not give up its arms and is prepared to resume fighting for the freedom of their people, according to Mon leaders.
Addressing a crowd of about 1,000 people gathered to mark the 64th anniversary of Mon National Day in Banan Bon, a village near the NMSP's headquarters, Nai Rot Sa, the group's vice chairman, said: “We agreed to a cease-fire with the regime in order to solve our political conflict peacefully, but we did not get the right to solve it.
“They (the regime) want us to surrender our arms to them. We will never do it. We will join our people and fight for freedom with these weapons,” he said.
The NMSP signed a cease-fire agreement with the regime in 1995, but the deal broke down last year after the group refused to become part of a Border Guard Force (BGF) under Burmese army command last June.
The NMSP has been preparing to go to war with the regime since then because of a number of violations of the cease-fire agreement by the Burmese army. As part of its preparations, it has invited former fighters to rejoin its ranks. So far, about 100 have returned, according a source close to the party.
“We need to get tough this time. If we don't, we won't win,” said Soe Win, a former member of the NMSP who rejoined last year. “If I catch someone this time, they won't get away alive.”
An officer of the NMSP said that group would wage guerrilla warfare to achieve its goals. Among other things, it said it would specially train snipers to shoot regime troops.
“We have about 1,000 troops. We can select 200 troops for special troops to wage this guerrilla war,” he said.
The speeches made by Mon leaders at events marking this year's Mon National Day were marked different from those made over the past 15 years, with many reflecting increasingly tense relations between the Mon and the regime.
In the past, NMSP leaders were careful to avoid inflammatory language; this year the tone has become decidedly more combative.
“If the regime wants to eliminate us with their guns, we are also ready to destroy them with our guns,” said Nai Hang Thar, the secretary of the NMSP.
“We are ready to deal with them together with the other members of our ethnic alliance,” he said.
The NMSP leaders said that the new alliance, called the Committee for the Emergence of a Federal Union, which brings together 12 ethnic armed groups, will pressure Burma's newly formed and ostensibly civilian government to address the country's ethnic political issues.
If there are cease-fire talks with the new government in the future, the Mon will not go alone but as part of a group with their ethnic allies, according to Nai Rot Sa.
The Mon leaders said they did not recognize the new government because it was not elected by the people in a free and fair election. They also said that the new government would not be able to solve the country's ethnic political conflicts.
The leaders said that they would continue to support Burma’s pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who called for a second Panglong conference, which will lead to unity among the ethnic people and peace in the country.
Also speaking at the Mon National Day ceremony in Banan Bon on Saturday were two respected Mon Buddhist abbots, U Palita and Apol Dot.
“Everyone has to die, but we need to die for our people,” said U Palita. “Be a slave of the Mon, but not a slave of the Burmese. If you are a slave of the Burmese, you will go to hell.”
About 100 members of the Mon National Liberation Army, including women, staged a military parade and sang the Mon national song while saluting the Mon flag.
Mon National Day commemorates the day when the first Mon kingdom, Hongsawatoi, was established in 1116 of the Buddhist Era, or 573 CE.
Jaclyn Youhana | The Journal Gazette
The dancer is clad in a bright red costume. As she moves to the center of the stage, the gold design on her dress catches the spotlight, and it glitters.
She wears a gold headpiece, and her fitted dress is so long, she shuffles more than walks. She crouches low.
Then the music starts, courtesy of traditional Burmese instruments along the back of the stage and hidden by ornate golden decorations.
The dancer, Mi Sajean Htaw, flicks her wrists. She bounces slightly to the music, and her sister begins to sing.
The dance is sinuous and elegant. The moves are slight and subtle, but deliberate.
Her hands frame her face by her chin one moment and are posed swan-like over her head the next. When she extends and undulates her arms, with a wingspan like a swan, the moment is similar to the American pop-and-lock style of dance: simultaneously jerky and graceful.
Mi Sajean Htaw’s solo dance was part of the Mon National Day celebration on Saturday in South Side High School’s auditorium, where about 200 people gathered to listen to speeches, see traditional dances and listen to Mon song. The event was produced by the Mon Youth Organization.
The Mon State is part of Myanmar, the ruling junta’s name for Burma. This is the 64th anniversary of the national celebration day, which occurs in February, said Taing Taw, secretary for the Mon community in Fort Wayne.
The day was created to promote Mon unity and culture, all with the hope to advance the rights of the Mon in Myanmar, according to statement given to those who attended the celebration. The last Mon kingdom was overthrown in the 1700s, and the Mon people have felt subjugated since by Burmese and Myanmar governments.
Currently, about 450 Mon people live in Fort Wayne, said Nai Yekha, chairwoman for the local Mon community.
“(We do this) to raise awareness of Mon literature and tradition and strengthen the unity between the Mon people,” he said.
jyouhana@jg.net
20 February 2011: Burma's ethnic Mon people across the globe celebrated their national day on 19 February 2011, marking its 64th anniversary in their respective residing countries.
A joint statement issued yesterday by a coalition of global Mon communities said: "The Mon National Day is annually celebrated on the founding day of the last Mon Kingdom, Hongsawatoi, by the two Mon princes, Samala and Wimala in 572 AD."
"It has been 64 years since the Mon National Day was conceived with the purpose of promoting the Mon national spirit and unity to regain the rights of Mon people."
In London, Mon Community in UK is to hold their national day celebration on 26 February 2011 in which Mon heroes will be honoured by singing Mon national anthem, performing live music and traditional dances as parts of promoting their culture and identity.
It is reported that Mon National Day was yesterday celebrated at Naypyidaw, the new capital of Burma.
Burma's military regime continues oppressing and denying the rights of the Mon as well as other ethnic nationalities in the country and acting nothing but just to prolong its stay on power, according to the statement.
In their statement, the Mon coalition called for a support of convening the secnond Panglong conference in order to establish a genuine federal union and of bringing national reconciliation, and urged the international communities to continue their support for democratic changes in Burma.
Burma's lasting political solution can be reached only through a tripartite dialogue between democratic forces led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, leaders of ethnic nationalities and the military regime, the coalition stressed.
The Mon established prosperous kingdoms in today’s lower Burma and enjoyed the rights of sovereign nations for many centuries. However, the last Mon kingdom, Hongsawatoi, was invaded and occupied by the Burman in 1757. Ever since, the Mon have been enslaved in their own land by the political duplicity and military might of the successive Burmese governments.
