President Thein Sein urges "negotiation instead of confrontation"

President Thein Sein urges "negotiation instead of confrontation"

Published on Sunday, 01 December 2013 17:06

President Thein Sein delivering a speech at Yangon University on November 30 (Photo – Win Myint Kyaw/EMG)

President Thein Sein yesterday urged civil society organizations to adopt dialogue instead of confrontation in carrying out their political, economic and social work.

The President made the remark during the conference of "The role of civic organizations in building a peaceful nation" held at the Diamond Jubilee Hall of Yangon University.

"Civil society groups and community-based organizations in Myanmar have the freedom to perform the political, economic and social development tasks out of their own goals and belief. But in this time of fragile situations, uncertainties, and challenges, confrontation should be avoided and solutions should be sought through negotiations," said Thein Sein.

The approach the organizations and individuals take should incorporate the view to sustain today political reforms, the President added.

The nation's peace process is now on the final stage of negotiation and it is believed to succeed. However, mutual trust among the government and the people that has been lost for a long time must be restored to achieve national unity, he said.

"Previous political experiences had caused suspicion among each other in today civil society. This remains a challenge for making political reforms with momentum. I believe civic organizations can help to build trust among the public which is critical for the future political developments," President Thein Sein said.

He also noted that selfishness, dishonesty, dogmatism, pessimism and lack of transparency can cause the society to lose trust among each other.

http://www.information.myanmaronlinecentre.com/president-thein-sein-urges-negotiation-instead-of-confrontation/