The United Nationalities Alliance (UNA) alliance of eight ethnic political parties will accept six more ethnic political parties who have applied for membership said the UNA leader U Khun Htun Oo.
He said: “We will accept the ethnic parties that have applied to become UNA members. The UNA will hold a meeting to approve them. I’m quite certain that they will be accepted because ethnic people need to be strong. Now, the Kachin people are uniting and the Karen people are uniting, that’s why the UNA needs to be strong.”
The decision on whether to accept the parties as new members will be taken at a UNA members’ meeting on 7 May.
The eight current members of the UNA are: the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD), the Arakan National Party (ANP), the Zomi Congress for Democracy (ZCD), the Karen National Party, the Mon National Party (MNP), the Kachin State National Congress for Democracy (KNDC), the Shan State Kokang Democratic Party (SSKDP), and the Kayan National Party.
Over 100 party members from the SNLD, ANP, ZCD, and MNP won parliamentary seats in the 2015 election.
Dr Manam Tu Jar, the chairman of the Kachin State Democracy Party (KSDP), one of the parties that has applied for UNA membership, said: “We applied for UNA membership before the 2015 election started. They amended their policies, rules and regulations then sent them to us and asked us whether we agreed with them. We have already informed them that we accept the UNA’s policies, but they still haven’t responded yet.”
The six ethnic political parties applying for UNA membership are: The KSDP, the Arakan Patriot Party, the Chin League for Democracy, the Danu National Progressive Party, the Chin Progressive Party, and the Mro National Democracy Party.
Translated by Thida Linn
Edited in English by Mark Inkey for BNI
