After the absence of Burmese language on a Shan State sign set off a debacle between local leadership and Tatmadaw officers, the dispute was resolved this weekend with a new welcome board.
The sign at the entrance of Mong Nang Group in Kyethi township now includes Shan and Burmese, but no longer has a line in English. It previously read: “Welcome from Mong Nang Group” in Shan language, and “Mong Nang” in English. But the lack of a Burmese translation angered a local Tatamadaw commander.
The new sign was made by three MPs from the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD). Politicians, local residents and area monks gathered to install it on Shan New Year’s Day, November 19, according to Shan State Hluttaw MP Sai San Mein.
“We consulted with Kyethi Township Administrator before putting up the sign. We didn’t submit any official request since there is no separate law concerning the posting of signs. Actually, this issue shouldn’t have happened,” he told the Shan Herald.
A notice released by the Shan State Minister of Municipal Affairs in June last year endorsed the use of non-Burmese ethnic languages on town entry and exit signs. Many townships in Shan State, including Taunggyi, the state capital, posted ethnic-language signs following the announcement.
But Major General Than Hlaing, the commander of the Tatmadaw’s Eastern Central Command, ordered the removal of Mong Nang’s former signboard for not including the Burmese language on November 10.
