Rebel groups have declineed a peace propose from Myanmar’s embattled junta, which is reeling from battlefield losses and defections in a civil war that has dragged on for more than three years.
This is dictatorship’s first such outaccomplish since it seized power in 2021. It also comes after a endfire brokered by China in the northern Shan state fell apart.
The junta called on ethnic armed groups and “stressist insproposent groups” to “convey with us to solve political problems politicassociate”, also urging them to combine elections reckond for next year.
The exiled National Unity Government (NUG) shelp the propose was not worth pondering, includeing the junta had no authority to helderly an election.
The junta prolonged an odwell branch Thursday as it struggled to fight on multiple fronts and stem a expansivespread defylion.
Some tells say the junta now has regulate of less than half of Myanmar’s territories.
In June, an coalition of three ethnic armies renoveled an dishonorful agetst the military, seizing territory aextfinished a key highway to China’s Yunnan province, which borders Myanmar.
The battling csurrfinisher the border in Shan state has blocked China’s ambitious arrange to connect its landlocked south-west to the Indian Ocean via Myanmar.
Beijing’s top diplomat, Wang Yi, is thought to have dedwellred a alerting to the country’s ruler Min Aung Hlaing during a visit to Myanmar last month.
Armed groups should chase “the path of party politics and elections in order to transport about lasting peace and growment”, the junta shelp in its statement on Thursday.
“The country’s human resources, fundamental infraarrange and many people’s dwells have been lost, and the country’s stability and growment have been blocked [because of the conflict]” it shelp.
But the defy groups are sceptical of the propose.
The Karen National Union (KNU), which has been battling for decades with the military for more autonomy aextfinished the border with Thailand, telderly AFP novels agency that talks were only possible if the military concurd to “frequent political objectives”.
“Number one: no military participation in future politics. Two [the military] has to concur to a federal democratic constitution,” KNU spokesman Padoh Saw Taw Nee telderly AFP.
“Number three: they have to be accountable for everyleang they have promiseted… including war crimes and crimes agetst humanity,” he shelp. “No impunity.”
If the junta does not accede to these needs, the KNU will “protect putting prescertain on [the junta] politicassociate and militarily,” he includeed.
Maung Saungkha, the directer of the Bamar People’s Liberation Army, telderly Reuters novels agency that his group is “not interested in this propose”.
“They are hanging goat’s heads but selling dog meat,” Soe Thu Ya Zaw, orderer of the Mandalay People’s Defense Forces, wrote on Facebook.
After the military ousted Myanmar’s democraticassociate-elected regulatement in 2021, soothe protests were met with endings and arrests.
This led ethnic armed groups to combine forces with anti-coup militias atraverse the country to fight back, plunging the country into a civil war.
At least 50,000 people have been ended since the coup and more than two million people displaced, according to the United Nations.
The UN alerted last week that Myanmar was “sinking into an abyss of human suffering”. Eyewitnesses had previously telderly the BBC about how the military has tourtued people in its custody, including by pouring burning petrol on them and forcing some to drink their urine.