MYANMAR, located between the two superpower countries, is standing in the strategic area of the Asian Continent. Hence, Myanmar has been cementing diplomatic relations with neighbouring countries for many years, exercising the foreign policy as independent, active and nonaligned foreign policy and upholding the principles of peaceful co-existence among nations.
From its establishment from the time of the First Myanmar Empire to the Third Empire, Myanmar has been overcoming various kinds of challenges and threats posed by external elements. So also, Myanmar has been marching onward to meet its missions and visions till today. But Myanmar never shirked from on its way to the goal. It is because all Myanmar national people accepted a concept that ‘the strength of the nation lies within’.
While going on its route, Myanmar has been possessing accumulated experiences in how to overcome challenges, how to tackle political affairs, how to handle business affairs, how to control the military operations, how to manage diplomatic relations, how to implement home affairs and so on.
A retrospective review of Myanmar revealed that the ancestors of Myanmar have settled on this land and lived under their own monarchies and traditions for thousands of years, standing tall and proud in the international community. Myanmar dubbed as a golden land, endowed with rich natural resources and high cultural standards, both above ground and underground, lost its sovereignty in 1885 and fell under the rule of the British colonialists.
Throughout the colonial period, Myanmar had had its resources overexploited, its religion and culture ill-treated, its literature and language restricted, and its national unity hampered by the policy of divide and rule exercised by the colonialists, an administrative system that favoured the bureaucratic mechanism. Aroused by patriotism and nationalism, all the ethnic national people across the country took up any weapons they could lay their hands on to fight back colonialists and fascists in their respective regions.
Hence, all national races residing in the land of Myanmar should not forget the bitter experiences in the time of colonial era. A Myanmar saying goes: “No lawyer never makes mistake; no medical practitioner never dies”. As such, all Myanmar national races need to take lessons from the past bitter experiences to be able to analyze the root causes of wrongdoings in the past and seek the best way to apply the good solutions from the past lessons in the practical fields for the benefit of the nation and the nationals.
For enabling the national people to reside in peace and prosperity, all national races sacrificed life and limb in the independence struggle and in fighting back the colonialists, holding up high esteemed Our Three Main National Causes —Non-disintegration of the Union, Non-disintegration of national solidarity and Perpetuation of sovereignty—through successive generations.
All nationalities should join hands in deterring possible threats to the security of the country and at the same time make concerted efforts for the development of the socio-economy of the national people. Thus, it is incumbent on the entire population to adhere to the four national objectives of the 74th Anniversary of Independence Day in turning motherland Myanmar into a Union based on democracy and federalism by practising the multiparty democracy.
To organize the 74th Anniversary of Independence Day, the government laid down four national objectives as follows: -
1. All ethnic nationals to safeguard non-disintegration of the Union, non-disintegration of national unity, and perpetuation of sovereignty;
2. To ensure the emergence of a good and clean government and administrative system by implementing a genuine disciplined democracy;
3. All ethnic nationals to amicably and unitedly cooperate in the country development based on the genuine Union spirit;
4. To strive for restoring perpetual peace the entire people aspire.
Concerning the national objectives, everybody, without doubt, knows the in-depth definition of Our Three Main National Causes mentioned on the first objective. As the second point, a good and clean government that exercises a better administrative system would be reliable to develop the country and would be able to realize the genuine disciplined democracy. The third point of the objectives is very important for national races. They have to understand the crucial role of the Union spirit. Only when the Union spirit is strong and dynamic will the country be under protection against alien penetration, threat and danger posed by external elements. Hence, their amicability and unity must be placed under the Union spirit. No matter what danger the country faces, the government and the people are to join hands in restoring the perpetual peace in the country while preparing themselves to be ready to wipe off the internal and international destructive elements.
As part of implementing the four national objectives, all the national people need to hold up a concept that the internal strengths could help people promote the prosperity of the State. Unity is a powerful strength to prevent any external influence or control. It is also a driving force to strive for the development of the country.
Indeed, Independence is freedom from the control and influence of the nation. Nobody wants to be controlled or influenced and wishes to accept the situation on the interference of others in internal affairs. Moreover, nobody from an independent country accepts the influence of others over them. For independence, strength is needed and necessary for the country and the people. The strength can turn out confidence and belief which are motivations behind independence.
Only an independent country could build up a better future of its own with dignity among the international community. Despite being free from control or influence, independence does not mean a lack of faith or trust in another person or community.
Now is the best time to modernize the land of Myanmar to be endowed with various kinds of facilities, and natural and human resources applied for uplifting the living standard of the ethnic national people in all parts of the nation. If the country sees the results of narrowing the development gap between the rural and urban areas, all the residents of the nation will have to grasp the chance for enjoying equal terms of rights in all aspects.
It will be a sowed seed for easing the doubts among the national people and it will be a driving force to build mutual trust, mutual respect and mutual understanding among them for building a modern and developed nation.
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