Summary of News
- Union Prime Minister Mahn Winn Khaing Thann urges increased collaboration with local defence forces (LDFs)
- The Myanmar Parliamentary delegation had bilateral meetings with parliamentarians from various countries during the 146th IPU Assembly and related meetings
- NUG’s Human Rights Minister says that the terrorist military council is setting up three strategies to topple the spring revolution, one of which is discrediting the spring revolution to undermine international assistance
- The Pekon PDF claims that 45 military council troops, including officers, who were marching towards Hkawng Ei village in Pekon Township, were killed during 9 days of clashes
- Ambassador U Kyaw Moe Tun calls on the international community to provide protection to Myanmar refugees, political asylum seekers, and helpless Myanmar people during his address at the United Nations
- The Mon State Revolutionary Organisation and the Mon Liberation Army form an alliance
1. Union Prime Minister Mahn Winn Khaing Thann urges increased collaboration with local defence forces (LDFs)
At the March 16 meeting of the Interim Local Administration Central Committee (ILACC), Union Prime Minister Mahn Winn Khaing Thann remarked the following:
“What is most important and a priority at present is the ability of ground forces to mobilize. It is of the utmost importance to be able to mobilize forces between township- or village-level people’s administration bodies (PaAhHpa), people’s defence teams (PaKaHpa), people’s security teams (PaLaHpa), the People’s Defence Force (PDF) battalions, and local defence forces (LDFs). Only if we strengthen collaboration with LDFs in accordance with Article 22 of the PaKaHpa Structure and Operation Guide released by the Ministry of Defence will we be able to accomplish the strong and systematic territory control that we all want, replace the fascist military, and establish a military/defence mechanism that people can rely on.”
The Ministry of Defence is registering the People’s Defence Force (PDF) battalions, and already 303 battalions of the PDF and 260 township- or village-level people’s defence teams (PaKaHpa) have been organized under the MOD.
2. The Myanmar Parliamentary delegation had bilateral meetings with parliamentarians from various countries during the 146th IPU Assembly and related meetings
According to the March 16 announcement of the Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH), the Myanmar Parliamentary delegation had bilateral meetings with the world’s parliamentarians during the 146th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union and related meetings held in Manama, Bahrain.
“During the meetings, the Myanmar delegation discussed topics such as the terrorist acts and human rights violations committed by the military junta, the need for emergency assistance for the IDPs, the challenges and efforts of the Myanmar parliament to restore democracy in Myanmar, and the issues on which the two sides can collaborate,” the CRPH stated.
From March 12 to 15, during the 146th IPU Assembly, the Myanmar delegation conducted bilateral meetings with world parliamentarians such as those from New Zealand, Australia, Austria, Indonesia, Laos, Thailand, South Korea, Germany, France, Sweden, and Timor Leste, as well as IPU officials.
3. NUG’s Human Rights Minister says that the terrorist military council is setting up three strategies to topple the spring revolution, one of which is discrediting the spring revolution to undermine international assistance
On March 16, Union Minister U Aung Myo Min said the following about the strategies of the terrorist military council:
“It has become clear lately that the terrorist military council has been working on three strategies to topple the spring revolution. The first strategy is to expand its military strength to carry out military assaults to crush the revolutionary forces, which is the strategy of oppression with fear. As for the second strategy, it becomes clear that the military council is trying to discredit the pro-democracy forces by accusing them of crimes it has committed. It is aimed at undermining international support by discrediting the noble Spring Revolution. The third strategy being used by the military council is to divide the people and the forces fighting for federal democracy, as well as the forces themselves.”
4. The Pekon PDF claims that 45 military council troops, including officers, who were marching towards Hkawng Ei village in Pekon Township, were killed during 9 days of clashes
“From March 8 to March 16, clashes broke out between the Pekon PDF 1002 Battalion and the terrorist military council column marching towards Hkawng Ei village in Pekon Township,” said the Pekon PDF.
According to the Pekon PDF, the Karenni National Defence Force (KNDF), the Kachin Army (KA), the DMO-local PDF, Mobye PDF 1001, 1004, 1008, 1005, and the SSNRU collaborated with the Pekon PDF 1002 in the clashes, and, within 9 days of the clashes, 8 members of the defence forces were wounded while 45 soldiers, including those of officers, from the military council were killed.
The military council is reported to have conducted airstrikes during the fighting, as well as heavy weapons from its 7th Military Operation Command (MOC-7).
5. Ambassador U Kyaw Moe Tun calls on the international community to provide protection to Myanmar refugees, political asylum seekers, and helpless Myanmar people during his address at the United Nations
Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun, Permanent Representative of Myanmar to the UN, called on the international community to do the following five things at the informal meeting of the UN General Assembly on March 16:
- to save lives by cutting off the flow of weapons, jet fuel, and financial flow to the brutal military,
- to provide humanitarian aid to people in need through direct channels, including cross-border means, and to protect Myanmar refugees, political asylum seekers, and helpless Myanmar people in their respective countries,
- to end military impunity and hold the perpetrators of serious international crimes accountable, either by referring Myanmar to the International Criminal Court or by establishing an ad hoc tribunal,
- to reject the junta’s representation and the junta’s sham election scheme, and
- to engage, work with, and support the National Unity Government, Ethnic Resistance Organisations, CRPH, NUCC, and other stakeholders in laying the foundation for a system of federal democracy with effective, inclusive, and accountable security sector institutions.
In addition, the ambassador also stated that the military’s actions are not mere human rights abuses, since it has brutally killed at least 3,130 people since the attempted coup, including the deliberate headshots of protesters, the killings of at least 920 detainees in military custody, and at least 145 people in interrogations.
6. The Mon State Revolutionary Organisation and the Mon Liberation Army form an alliance
The Mon State Revolutionary Organisation announced on March 17 that it has formed an alliance with the Mon Liberation Army in order to carry out revolutionary matters together. The military council is desperately trying to gain territorial control over Mon State and has declared martial law in some townships of Mon State.
#Credit : Radio NUG
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