Government officials and representatives of the Mon National Priorities Implementation and Negotiation Group reached an agreement last Friday granting informal approval for the use of multilingual entrance and road signs around Mon State.
The meeting brought together state government officials led by Chief Minister U Min Min Oo and nine group representatives at the Mon State government office on July 1.
“When we asked the state chief minister to add Mon language to entrance and road signs, [he] said that he had already talked to the municipal department about that. He gave his informal approval to use Mon, Myanmar and English on signs,” said Nai Tala Nyi, a member of the Mon National Priorities Implementation and Negotiation Group.
In addition to his role as chief minister, U Min Min Oo also co-manages departments for state municipal development and construction.
Both sides also agreed to return the statue of a Bop Htaw, a golden bird and national symbol for ethnic Mon people that was taken down by the military government in 2007, to its former perch in a roundabout at the city’s main entrance, according to U Min Min Nwe of the Mon priorities group.
“A replacement Bop Htaw statue is still being sculpted. It will be done within two months.”
U Min Min Nwe added that Friday’s meeting participants also agreed to work together towards the establishment of teaching committees tasked with ensuring Mon language instruction in state schools.
The 9-member Mon National Priorities Implementation and Negotiation Group, founded to advocate for projects on behalf of the Mon public, was created on June 24 at Mon Hall in Mawlamyine, the capital of Mon State, formerly known as Moulmein.
