MNDF-LA releases statement in advance of 2010 election
By Asah, IMNA
27 May 2009
Today the Mon National Democratic Front, located in the Liberated Area, released a statement titled “statement commemorating the 1990 general election,” concerning the 1990 election results, Aung San Su Kyi, and their stance on the upcoming 2010 election.
The statement cites the successful election of Aung San Su Kyi in 1990, who was ultimately denied power by the Burmese government, as a central reason to side against the government in the coming election. In 1990 the National League for Democracy (NLD) candidate, Aung San Su Kyi, won in a landslide election to the surprise of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), which had hoped to use the election to legitimize its rule.
Aung San Su Kyi, according to the statement, is the only political actor to be able to solve the nation’s problems as well as many of the unresolved issues for ethnic groups. The statement goes on to urge the Burmese government to release Aung San Su Kyi so that she can continue to work towards solving the nation’s problems.
When asked by an IMNA reporter, MNDF-LA general secretary Nai OauSar stated, “The statement requests the release of Daw Aung San Su Kyi because in the 1990 election, the military government requested that the 100 parties work towards solutions for both national issues as well as solutions for ethnic nationality. But all the groups supported Daw Aung San Su Kyi’s solutions to the national issues.”
A germane issue addressed in the MNDF-LA statement is that the SPDC’s 2008 constitutional referendum to the constitution granted no rights to ethnic groups. Additionally the 2008 referendum stripped national groups of their political rights, who had been hoping for the opportunity to gain political influence in their own states. The statement goes on to say that the 2008 referendum prepared the government for the coming 2010 election, and that if any group participates they will be cutting off the possibility of future elections. Anyone who cooperation in the election is “betraying their nationality,” said the MNDF-LA in their statement.
Nai Oau Sar added, “The aim of the statement is to remind members of the Mon nationality to not join with the military and to stand against the government in the coming 2010 election.”
