ASEAN urged to aid in peace talks

ASEAN urged to aid in peace talks

MAE SOT, Thailand (DPA): The new Karen National Union
chairman, Saw Ba Thin Sein, would like to see the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) press the military government in
Yangon to talk peace with the ethnic group, he said.

The new KNU leadership, elected during a congress in mid-
January, sent messages to the State Peace and Development Council
(SPDC) government in Yangon soon after taking office, stating
they wanted to start a new dialog, but they have received no
response.

"We hope that the ASEAN countries can encourage the SPDC to
come to the table and settle their political problems peacefully
according to their constructive engagement policy," Ba Thin said
in an interview this week.

Speaking on the Thai-Myanmar border near Mae Sot, 380
kilometers northwest of Bangkok, Ba Thin, 73, added, even though
he is a civilian and has taken over as chairman from General Saw
Bo Mya, who held the post from 1966 until January, the KNU still
will not lay down their weapons before talking with Yangon.

But the SPDC still demands the KNU lay down their arms first
before agreeing to talk about a political settlement.