Have you ever heard about the recent movement in Burma? Yes, it's the Shan State Progressive Party/North Shan State Army, they have recently made a big story and announced that they are going to war with the Burmese junta.
This is not a small matter, after all, they have always said that they want to solve the problem peacefully, but now they suddenly change their faces, and the story behind this is really complicated.
Let's talk about the Panglong Accord 77 years ago, when everyone thought it would bring about a true federal state and guarantee the autonomy of all peoples.
The military junta did not buy it at all, and they only cared about their own Greater Burmese nationalism and threw the rights and interests of ethnic minorities out of the clouds.
This made Lieutenant General Zhao Kun Sheng of the Shan State Progressive Party/Northern Shan State Army particularly angry, saying that they had run out of patience and could only solve the problem through war.
Actually, they have always wanted to solve the problem through political means, after all, who doesn't want to live in peace? But the junta doesn't give face at all, and every negotiation is empty talk, and there is no substantive progress at all.
Lieutenant General Zhao Kunsheng said they had tried countless times, but each time they were forced back by the junta's ignorance and repression.
Speaking of which, we have to mention the 2012 ceasefire agreement. At that time, the Shan State Progressive Party/Northern Shan State Army signed a ceasefire agreement with the Union of Myanmar Government, and everyone thought that peace was possible.
In 2015 and 2017, the Tatmadaw launched an attack on the town of Wanhai, where the Northern Shan State Army is headquartered, and large-scale fighting broke out. This ceasefire agreement is, to put it bluntly, a dead letter.
Lieutenant General Zhao Kun Sheng is now determined to fight the junta to the end, and he called on the people of Shan State and the revolutionary armed forces to fight against the dictatorial regime under the leadership of the Shan State Progressive Party/Northern Shan State Army.
He said that there can be no more hesitation now, if you don't fight today, tomorrow you will be plunged into a larger war. Their struggle today is to ensure that tomorrow will not be difficult.
This sounds quite tragic, but behind it is actually quite sad. Ethnic minorities in Shan State have long been marginalized, their voices rarely heard, and their rights rarely respected.
This decision by the Shan State Progressive Party/Northern Shan State Army, while fraught with the shadow of war, also reflects the aspirations of ethnic minorities for equality, dignity and freedom.