Speaker of the Union Parliament Shwe Mann warned a lower house parliamentarian on Tuesday not to use the word “revolutionary” when referring to ethnic armed groups.
Nang Wah Nu, a lower house MP from Shan State’s Kunhein Township, referred to the Shan State Army-North (SSA-N) as a “revolutionary group” in a discussion about ongoing clashes between the Shan militia and the Burmese army. Shwe Mann informed her that she should not use such a word.
“In the parliament session on Tuesday, when discussing the clashes, I urged the government to immediately halt clashes and military activities between the Burmese army and ethnic revolutionaries, and to resolve issues via negotiations and political means,” Nang Wah Nu said. “I was warned by the speaker against using the word ‘revolutionaries’ – he claimed that using that word can be detrimental to the peace process and he suggested I refer to these groups as ‘ethnic armed organisations’.”
Nang Wah Nu defended the use of the term, adding that it is common parlance.
“I don’t know how the speaker defines the word ‘revolutionary’, but I used it with an honest intent as it is commonly used among the public, especially among locals in the ethnic regions,” she said. “I believe that using the term ‘revolutionary’ is not detrimental or harmful to peace.”
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