STATEMENT

STATEMENT

No. (41/2020)

12 November 2020

The 2020 general election has been held. The results of the winning and losing candidates as well as the winning party in the position of forming the new government have been published.

In most of the townships in Arakan, however, elections were cancelled. As a result, the people of those constituencies were disenfranchised. They lost their representation. Their voices cannot be heard, and the rights of the citizens and of the indigenous ethnic groups, and their basic democratic rights cannot be defended through their elected representatives.

Our organization sincerely desires that by-elections be held in those constituencies in order that the people do not lose their rights. To that end, we have extended our unilateral ceasefire effective from the 11th of November through the 31st of December 2020.

Myanmar Army should cooperate with the NLD government to hold by-elections as soon as possible by halting ongoing offensives in Arakan and declaring a comprehensive ceasefire embracing the whole nation.

We therefore would like to request and recommend that the NLD government and Myanmar Army facilitate by-elections in the townships where elections were cancelled.

In order to contribute to a stable situation conducive to the holding of elections, we, ULA/AA, hereby declare our desire to cooperate with the government and respective organizations where needed.

United League of Arakan/Arakan Army (ULA/AA)

PS: This is a translation from the Burmese into English. Therefore, please consult with the Burmese language version in case there is any contradictory or vague terms.