‘People’s Charter’ Puts Federalism at The Heart of Myanmar’s Democratic Future – The Irrawaddy

The Peoples Representatives Committee for Federalism (PRCF) published its constitution for a federal democracy on Feb. 12.

The committee comprises 12 political parties: the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy, Arakan League for Democracy, Karen National Party, Zomi Congress for Democracy, Democratic Party for a New Society, United Nationalities Democracy Party, Danu Nationalities Democracy Party, Daingnet National Development Party, Mro National Democracy Party, Karen National Party, Shan State Kokang Democratic Party and Mon Affairs Association.

Previously known as the PRF, the committee changed its name to PRCF in March 2021.

Sai Kyaw Nyunt, a joint secretary of the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy, recently spoke with The Irrawaddy about the objectives of the constitution and its most important features.

What is the intention of publishing a constitution?

It has been nearly two years since we drafted the constitution in 2022. So, we decided that it was time to publish it.

What is the PRCF?

The PRCF was formed after the 2021 coup. It comprises primarily members of the United Nationalities Alliance and their partners.

The PRCF mentioned three main tasks in its statement about publishing its constitution. Can you elaborate on them?

We cant accept any form of dictatorship, either military dictatorship or civilian dictatorship. The conflict in our country since independence is deeply connected to the constitution. The 1974 constitution did not meet the wishes of the people and the same is true of the 2008 constitution.

In our view, federalism is the best [form of government] for this highly diverse and multi-ethnic country. But federalism alone is not enough. There must also be democracy. So, there is a need for a federal, democratic constitution. But again, a constitution alone is not enough. Peaceful co-existence is also critically important for us to come together to form and maintain a union.

How do you see the current political landscape in Myanmar?

Myanmar is at war now. We are politicians so we dont know much about military affairs. Military solutions alone cant solve problems in a country. Space for politics is necessary. It is more powerful than military action in terms of fulfilling the wishes of the people. We want things handled peacefully.

So, your political parties prefer non-violence?

We dont want to say which is right and which is wrong. I am only talking about our tendency. By political means, I mean you dont necessarily have to establish a party and contest the election. You may oppose the voting, and release statements about your views. These are all political means. Dialogue is also a political means. This is what we believe.

What drove the PRCF to design a constitution?

Eleven of the 12 organizations in the PRCF are political parties. We believe certain conditions must be met for our country to have greater peace and stability. So, we have designed the constitution, outlining the conditions that we think are necessary to have peace and stability. Those parties have won votes and support from people in their respective constituencies. So, we designed the constitution to convey our idea about an ideal union.

What are the salient points about your constitution?

We refer to four documents: the fundamental principles of the PRCF, the fundamental principles in a federal democracy charter, the constitution from the Federal Constitution Drafting and Coordinating Committee, and the constitution from the UNA and allies. Our constitution touches upon new topics, such as financial matters, relations between government agencies, and administration and public services.

So, is it fair to say the constitution drafted by the PRFC is one that reflects the federal democracy charter declared by anti-regime political forces?

We cant say so. Many organizations, including ethnic armed organizations, were involved in designing the federal democracy charter. Our constitution was drafted solely by PRCF members, but it can be used as a draft for all the stakeholders to discuss in the future.

Will you accept recommendations, if there are any, to your constitution?

We are willing to accept any recommendation that does not go against our principles.

The military regime upholds the 2008 Constitution. What will you say if they say they dont accept your constitution?

We represent people to a certain extent, and we live among the people. So, the constitution represents our view of what this country should be like. Everyone is aware that one group or organization representing all the others was not successful. We need to try to write a constitution that is acceptable to all by negotiating between all stakeholders.

How did stakeholders in the country respond to your constitution?

No one has yet strongly responded to our constitution. It was only published recently, and perhaps stakeholders are still studying it. Our constitution is largely based on documents of ethnic armed organizations, ethnic political organizations and ethnic Bamar organizations. So, there wont be much difference between ours and theirs.

There might be differences in the way we operate, but I dont think there will be much disagreement regarding policies. The policies of the regime and the military, however, can be markedly different from ours. In the future, we will have to accept what is best for the people.

What is the PRCFs next step?

We established political parties to do our share for the country. So, we will continue to work in our way to restore peace and build a country that all citizens want to see.

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'People's Charter' Puts Federalism at The Heart of Myanmar's Democratic Future - The Irrawaddy