Arakanese party candidate names poll friends and foes

Friday, 10 September 2010 02:26 Khaing Suu

New Delhi (Mizzima) - Ethnic Arakanese party candidate Zaw Aye Maung has identified a fellow Arakan State compatriot as his main rival and the National Democratic Force as his party’s main ally in national polls on November 7.

The 50-year-old Rakhine Nationalities Development Party (RNDP) member is to stand for an ethnic quota seat for Rangoon Division in the National Assembly.

Zaw Aye Maung was born in the Arakan State capital of Sittwe, and runs a jewellery company. His popularity is based on his decades-long leadership of many social and religious activities in the Arakan community of Rangoon, the former Burmese capital. He is also vice-chairman of the Arakan Society Association based there.

His main Arakanese rival in the national elections on November 7 looks set to be Major Tun Zan Aung, representing the junta-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), who is also a general manager of the Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings group. The company is subject to US sanctions over its close ties to the repressive Burmese regime.

The RNDP, a new Arakanese political party, which has stated aims of working for the ethnic group’s aspirations, has its head office in the port of Sittwe. It will also contest in Rangoon for ethnic quota seats as many Arakanese have settled in the city.

Arakan State is located in the western costal region of Burma, where the junta is exploiting the “Shwe” natural gas reserve and it is where the dual trans-Burma oil and gas pipelines to China begin.

The RNDP believed these projects would do little to help the poverty in Arakan State, and said its elected lawmakers would seek policy reform and redistribution of income from the gas in the national legislature.

It saw the National Democratic Force (NDF) as its ally in the coming polls and hopes the NDF could win many of the 330 civilian seats up for grabs.

“Although the USDP has registered candidates across the country, if you have a chance to make a choice, I would like to suggest voting for Ka-mouk [peasant hat], a symbol of the NDF party,” Zaw Aye Maung told Mizzima. “If the NDF can’t compete in some constituencies, please vote for the National Unity Party (NUP) instead, and if the constituencies are in the ethnic region, please vote for ethnic nationalities parties.”

The NDF, formed by renegade members of Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy party after it decided against contesting the polls, told the Associated Press late last month that it expected to field at least 140 candidates for both houses and regional parliaments, party chairman Than Nyein said.

“Out of 100 per cent of the legislatures’ seats, the constitution has already set aside 25 per cent for the military … If we can take 60 per cent of the remaining seats, we will have authority to make change. [But] There will be no change if the USDP wins and the country will continue under the same conditions,” Zaw Aye Maung said.

The RNDP planned to contest a total of 44 constituencies in Arakan State and in Rangoon and Irrawaddy divisions for the Peoples’ Assembly, the National Assembly and the State’s and Region’s Assembly, he said.

“For expatriates living abroad, please continue your work. But in this important political situation, if you convince people not to vote and not to contest in the election, the party that is not contributing anything to the Arakanese people may win … That is why we must compete in the election,” Zaw Aye Maung said.