Written By Lisa Murimi
Rebel groups in Myanmar have rejected a peace offer from the ruling military junta, which has faced mounting battlefield losses and defections in the ongoing civil war.
The junta’s outreach, the first since seizing power in a 2021 coup, comes after a China-brokered ceasefire in northern Shan state collapsed.
The junta urged ethnic armed groups and insurgents to “solve political problems politically” and join elections scheduled for next year.
However, the exiled National Unity Government (NUG) dismissed the offer, stating that the junta lacks the authority to organize elections.
The junta’s appeal follows significant territorial losses, with reports suggesting they control less than half of Myanmar’s territory.
Rebel groups, like the Karen National Union (KNU), are skeptical, demanding the military’s withdrawal from politics and accountability for war crimes.
The ongoing conflict, which has seen at least 50,000 deaths and displaced over two million people, has intensified near the Chinese border, disrupting Beijing’s plans to connect southern China to the Indian Ocean via Myanmar.
Rebel leaders, like Maung Saungkha of the Bamar People’s Liberation Army, dismissed the offer, calling it insincere.
The United Nations recently warned that Myanmar is descending into an “abyss of human suffering,” as civil war continues to ravage the country.
