KNU Chairman Passed Away
Pado Ba Thin Sein the chairman of Karen National Union and chairman of Ethnic Nationalities Council of Union of Burma passed away at Thai-Burma border on May 22, 2008.
Pado Ba Thin Sein joined the Karen National Union (KNU) since the beginning of its founding in 1949 and played many important roles in the Karen people’s long struggle for democracy, equality and self-determination within the framework of federal arrangement. He served his people faithfully through the KNU as its General Secretary from 1983 to 1999, and as the Chairman from 2000 to 2008 until his last breath.
Under his leadership, all the non-Burman ethnic nationalities in Burma founded the Ethnic Nationalities Solidarity and Corporation Committee (ENSCC) in 2001, which was transformed into the Ethnic Nationalities Council (ENC) in 2004. He served as the Chairman of both ENSCC (2001-2004) and ENC (2004-2008). The Ethnic Nationalities Council, under the leadership of Pado Ba Thin Sein, has undertaken pro-active and constructive action to bring about a peaceful resolution to the political conflict in Burma through a negotiated-settlement.
The Ethnic Nationalities Council in its condolence letter released today said: “He was not just a leader of the Karen people but a staunch supporter of the establishment of accountable democratic governance for all the peoples of Burma. He was not just a warrior but a consensus builder and peace maker, who always expressed his willingness to solve political crisis in Burma through a Tripartite Dialogue, that is a dialogue amongst the SPDC, democratic forces led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and ethnic nationalities.”.
Karen National Union is the largest ethnic armed resistance group fighting against the Burmese military regime for greater autonomy of the Karen people and the Ethnic Nationalities Council is an umbrella political organization representing seven ethnic states from Union of Burma.
The body of Chairman Pado Saw Ba Thein Sein, 82, is going to be buried in Kawthoolei, Pha-Ann district, the homeland of the Karen people under the control of Karen National Union.
