Message On Sixty Anniversary Shan National Day

7th February 2007

On  this sixty anniversary Shan National Day, the SDU would like to wish the Sangha, people of Shan State, SSA/RCSS, SSA as a whole and all resistance groups within and outside the Shan State a happy occasion blessed with renewed energy to help realise our birthright sovereignty, equality and democracy.

It is a known fact that in general term, national day anniversary is meant to celebrate the attainment of freedom and nationhood from one's oppressor or coloniser, where a new state emerges and independence achieved. In short, it is a restoration of the concerned people's right of self-determination with no string attached whatsoever.

Our present situation, after 60 years of co-independence together with Burma Proper and other non-Burman states, is still not a free country or an independent one, for we have been occupied and treated as colonial possession of the successive Burmese military regimes, including the recent one - the SPDC.

All of us are aware and grateful to our resistance armies, SNLD, other Shan political parties and civil societies for keeping our identity and nationhood alive during these difficult years.

While we may have made false moves collectively or individually in the past, we can now safely assumed that the majority of our people and the organisations that represent them are united in our goal to strive from a non-state nation to fully fledged nation-state, either within the mould of genuine federalism or total independence, depending on the ever changing value and needs of our people and existing international political configuration of the day.

Needless to say that we all need to fight smart to attain our cherished goal, which we have been doing now for quite a while. SDU sincerely hope that we all will continue to work in co-ordination and co-operation until victory is achieved.

Sai Wansai (General Secretary)

Shan Democratic Union

60th Anniversary of Shan (Tai) National Day in Japan

On this time of the 60th Anniversary of Shan National Day, it is for us to reflect on the day that our leaders of Shan People gathered   and adopted our National Anthem, National Flag and our National Day 60 years ago. When our princes and politicians to make this day as the most important day for the Shan people as a whole, they decided to lay down a concrete foundation to establish a nation for our generation to come. The chieftains (Sao Phas) and the Shan politicians who had intentions to free Shan people and the ethnic minority in Shan State from the British Colony, they hoped for the better future for our people to live in a modern nation like other people in the world.

 On the 14th of February 1947 Shan and other Non-Burman ethnic Leaders signed the "Panglong Agreement" with General Aung San, who represented the Burman ethnic state, for joint independence from the British. Our then Shan leaders and the leaders of non-Burmese ethnic groups trusted General Aung San and Burmese politicians and agreed to work together for the freedom of our people. And a Union Constitution was in which all ethnic groups including Burmese would share the equal rights and responsibilities, was drafted and passed in 1948. Thus the Union of Burma came into existence as a result of the sincere and genuine cooperation from our Shan leaders and other non-Burmese ethnic groups.

 According to the Agreement and Constitution the Union of Burma was created and it was a federation system, not unitary state. The Agreement also stated that all member states should have equal status and equal opportunities and that the Shan State and the Karenni State have the right to secede from the Union after a period of ten years, which was the year 1958. The Shan and other non-Burman ethnic people put their faith and trust in their more experienced partner, the Burman politicians and were ready to work with them for the benefit of the Union. The non- Burman ethnic nationals were betrayed and The Panglong Agreement” ruined by the Burmese Military Regimes when they took power by  coup and the  Constitution was destroyed and the Union of Burma was melted. Since the military Coup in 1962, the policy of the juntas has been to destroy the Shan people as whole and eliminate Shan leaders.  The strongest and the most outspoken like Sao Kya Hseng, the Chieftain of Hsipaw were either killed  or like Sao Shwe Thaike, the First President of the Union of Burma was poisoned when he was still in prison.

Since the coup led by Ne Win, the military regimes used oppressing and suppressing policies to put the states together. They have attempted to destroy the tradition, culture and literature of Shan people and other non-Burma ethnic communities in the country. Forced labour policy has been employed for the ethnic cleansing in Shan State and other States. Many millions of people are forced to leave their homelands and live as in refugee camps in neighboring countries. Gross human rights violations, genocide and cultural genocide, attempts to reduce our population are  designed to make us a minority in our homeland, torturing and killing our innocent people, raping our Shan young girls,  destroying our properties and confiscating our lands for the military camps are used as  weapons  of wars in Shan State.

Our Shan leader Khun Htun Oo and his SNLD colleagues were arrested and put them in a long-term imprison for their political activities.

1. On the marking of the Shan National Day like this occasion, we send our demands to the Burmese military regime to

1. Immediately release Khun Htun Oo and  other SNLD leaders and all political prisoners in Burma,
2. Punish the burmese soldiers in Shan State raping Shan  girls
3. Stop torturing and killing innocent Shan people,
4. Allow the United Nations Human Rights Council to investigate freely the human rights violations by the Burmese soldiers in Shan State,
5. to engage a tripartite dialogue with the National League for Democracy and non-Burmese ethnic nationalities  implement  a meaningful process of political reform,

2. We, SND in Japan request, the Japanese Government to put more pressure on the Burmese military regime for political change and respect the United Nations’ Human Rights Declaration.

3. We would like to request that Russian and Chinese Governments stop opposing the United Nation Security Council’s resolution on the Burmese military regime by considering human rights situation as a priority issue; on humanitarian grounds to take appropriate and immediate action leading to a change in government and restoration of democracy in Burma.

Shan National for Democracy (Japan)