The guerrillas break the pact with the junta | Rebel …

Ten of Myanmar’s main rebel factions will “review” the peace agreement signed in 2015 with the army, in response to the military regime’s crackdown on the pro-democracy movement, which has already claimed at least 550 lives since the coup. ‘Status as of February 1. More than 12,000 displaced people have fled army airstrikes in recent days, said today one of those groups, the powerful Karen National Union (KNU), which called on the country’s ethnic minorities to s ‘unite against the junta.

Since the independence of Myanmar, ex-Burma, in 1948, many armed ethnic factions have been in conflict with the central government for greater autonomy, the recognition of their specificity, access to the many natural resources of the country or part lucrative traffic. drugs. In 2015, the military reached a ceasefire agreement with ten of the factions, including the KNU, one of the largest armed groups in the country.

Shortly after the February 1 coup that overthrew the civilian government of Aung San Suu Kyi, these rebel groups assured that they would continue with the ceasefire, even though the generals began to suppress . Since then, “hundreds of civilians, minors, adolescents and women have been killed” by security forces, they said in a statement. For this reason, the ten factions, which began a two-day meeting this Saturday, will “review” their position in the ceasefire agreement, they added.

“The leaders of the military junta must be held accountable,” warned General Yawd Serk, leader of the rebel group Restoration Council. The KNU is particularly vicious against the junta, seizing a military base in southeast Karen state last week and killing 10 soldiers. Other armed groups have already supported the democratic mobilization and threatened to take up arms again against the junta, which is suppressing the uprising with blood and fire.

The United Nations (UN) envoy for Myanmar, Christine Schraner Burgener, this week warned of the “unprecedented” risk of “civil war” in that country. At least 550 civilians have been shot dead by security forces in the past two months, according to the Association for the Assistance of Political Prisoners (AAPP). There could be many more, as more than 2,700 people have been detained, without access to family members and lawyers. Many are missing.

The military seized power on February 1 after overthrowing the government of the National League for Democracy (LND), the party of Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi, whom they accuse of committing “fraud” during the elections. last elections. Since then, the repression has intensified in front of a UN Security Council which remains divided: China and Russia oppose the sanctions, while the United States and the United Kingdom are in favor and have already imposed them bilaterally.