Peace Commission, KIO to hold informal talks in China

Peace Commission, KIO to hold informal talks in China
Published 19 January 2019
Aung Ko Ko

The government's Peace Commission and a delegation from Kachin Independence Organization/Kachin Independence Army (KIO/KIA) will hold an informal meeting in Kunming, China, on January 21.

Hsan Aung, member of the Peace Talks Creation Group (PCG) in Kachin State, said the informal talks aimed to continue the peace efforts for the northern region.

"At the meeting, the discussion will focus on the peace efforts in the northern region which are supposed to be going backwards. We will also discuss with the KIO delegation other ongoing issues in the northern region including the situation of displaced people," said Hsan Aung.

Peace Commission vice chairman Thein Zaw and Major General Gwan Maw will hold their discussions, but military leaders will not attend the meeting.

A Kachin mass conference took place in Thailand from January 12 to 14 with representatives from locally and foreign based Kachin organizations. After the conference, a statement was issued including the decision to establish an independent Kachin State.

"Regarding this matter, I don't think it's a stance of KIO. This may also be what they want to be. It will depend on what we discuss. These talks are related to peace efforts for the people. After such informal meeting, we will soon hold official meetings on military deployments, mutual trust building and ceasefire.

The upcoming informal talks will be the first between the government and KIO this year.