Following the 8th Joint Implementation Coordination Meeting (JICM) for the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA), eight agreements have been reached to advance the peace process. Top leaders from the government and the NCA signatories reached agreement to resume the peace process known as the 21st Century Panglong, before the end of April 2020.

The JICM meeting was held at the National Reconciliation and Peace Center (NRPC) in Nay Pyi Taw on January 8. Attendees included representatives from the government including State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and Deputy Commander in Chief of Defense Services Vice Senior General Soe Win along with the other government representatives and leaders of the ethnic armed groups that have signed the NCA.

The agreements include a framework for the peace process to continue beyond 2020. According to the Nai Aung Ma Ngae, who participated as a representative of New Mon State Party (NMSP) the process will include the parties signing a contract as a part III of the Union Agreement.

Nai Aung Ngae said “we will continue working with the committee. After that, the Union Peace Dialogue Joint Committee (UPDJC) and Joint Ceasefire Monitoring Committee (JMC) is to be convened.”

It was also agreed that both UPDJC and JMC meetings will take place in two months and new definitions will be developed to include ethnic armed groups that have not yet signed the NCA.

A spokesperson for the President’s Office U Zaw Htay said “we generally have the federal principles that we agree with, and if we negotiate with each other, we can achieve the federal system that is acceptable to all. The results from the discussion will be adding in part III.”

Ethnic armed groups that are currently non-signatories to the NCA will be invited to participate in the upcoming 21st Century Panglong (Fourth Meeting), U Zaw Htay added.