The United Wa State Army (UWSA) has opened its first army cadet training school in Pangsang where its headquarters is located to teach advanced subjects and skills as the world changes, and more than 100 trainees are studying there, said UWSA’s liaison officer Nyi Rang in Lashio Township, Shan State.
The military academy was inaugurated on September 11, attended by UWSA chairman Bao Youxiang and political and military leaders from the Wa group.
Nyi Rang said preparations had long been in place to open the academy .
“To catch up with the changing and advancing age, our Wa army needs human resources. We need to learn advanced skills and subjects,” he said.
He added that their training school would facilitate the development of Wa Self-Administered Zone and the peace and rule of law process in Myanmar.
The academy has not seen trainees from other ethnic armed organizations and four-year training is currently exclusive to only UWSA, he said.
“Our school is to turn out political and military officers. It is for our organization only,” Nyi Rang said.
UWSA is the most powerful ethnic armed organization in the country and it has yet to belong to the ongoing Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA).
“When it comes to NCA, we have issued many statements. We don’t oppose it,” he said.
