State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi chairs Union-level Peace Dialogue Joint Committee (UPDJC) meeting (Source: globalnewlightofmyanmar.com) Hanoi (VNA) – Official sources in Myanmar announced on May 27 that the country’s Union Peace Dialogue Joint Committee (UPDJC) will be reformed with State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi heading this 18 member body.
Three vice chairpersons have been assigned to the committee, including U Kyaw Tint Swe, Padoh Saw Kwel Htoo Win and U Thu Wai, while former government peace negotiator U Hla Maung Shwe will serve as the committee’s secretary.
During UPDJC’s first meeting, Aung San Suu Kyi said that the reformed committee will include some previous members who are representatives from ethnic groups, political parties and the government.
Discussions on the details of the reform will be continued during May 28's meeting, which will also deal with issues including the formation of the new National Reconciliation and Peace Centre (NRPC) and preparations for the upcoming 21st Century Panglong Ethnic Conference.
The previous Myanmar government along with eight armed ethnic groups out of 15, signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Accord (NCA) on October 15, 2015. A union-level Joint Ceasefire Monitoring Committee (JCMC) was formed after that, along with the UPDJC, aiming to draft a framework for holding political dialogue as part of the implementation of the NCA.-VNA
