Hidden Stories Behind the Panglong Agreement

The Panglong Agreement is a landmark treaty in Myanmar's independence history. To achieve independence from the British, Myanmar signed three major agreements: the Aung San-Attlee Agreement, the Laykyar-Freeman Agreement, and the Nu-Attlee Agreement. However, before these independence agreements were signed, an historic conference was held in February 1947 in Panglong, Shan State, where ethnic minorities decided whether to join with mainland Burma in seeking independence.

Yet when discussing the Panglong Agreement, many historical events remain unknown or little-known to the public. This article highlights some well-known facts alongside lesser-known events to provide a more complete historical perspective.

Shwedagon Middle Platform Meeting Before Panglong

Before the Panglong Agreement was signed, the AFPFL (Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League) held a nationwide conference at the middle platform of Shwedagon Pagoda in January 1946. This gathering is also known as the Shwedagon Middle Platform Conference. At this meeting, General Aung San delivered a speech that resulted in two crucial decisions: to achieve independence within one year and to seek independence together as a united country without separating the hill regions from the plains.

General Aung San's AFPFL Ultimatum

Armed with the decisions from the Shwedagon conference, General Aung San's AFPFL team demanded on November 8, 1946, that the British grant independence to Myanmar within one year. The group also declared that if independence wasn't granted, Aung San's AFPFL team would withdraw from the government. Since the entire population stood behind General Aung San's AFPFL, this ultimatum became a significant concern for the British.

Myanmar's Independence Reaches British Parliament

As a result of the AFPFL ultimatum, on December 20, 1946, British Prime Minister Attlee officially announced in the British House of Commons that Myanmar would be granted independence, either as a British Dominion or as a fully independent nation. Following this announcement, General Aung San and his team were invited to England to discuss independence.

Nehru and General Aung San

On their way to Britain, Aung San's delegation stopped in India. There, Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had a Western-style suit tailored for Aung San to match England's cold climate and presented it as a gift. You may have seen photographs of General Aung San wearing a Western suit – that coat was a gift from Indian Prime Minister Nehru.

The Code Word

After arriving in England, General Aung San's team discussed Myanmar's independence with Prime Minister Attlee. Attlee showed Aung San a letter from the Shan Sawbwas (princes) claiming that Aung San didn't represent ethnic minorities. Meanwhile, back in Myanmar, Acting Prime Minister U Nu led efforts in Shan State to demand that hill regions and plains jointly seek independence. When Attlee learned about this, he and Aung San signed an agreement – the Aung San-Attlee Agreement – which established that Britain would grant independence to Myanmar.

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After signing the treaty, U Kyaw Nyein, who accompanied Aung San and later became Home Minister, sent a secret telegram to the AFPFL in Myanmar confirming the successful agreement. The coded message was "Orange" – if the agreement had failed, the message would have been "Lemon."

Those Who Didn't Sign the Aung San-Attlee Agreement

Two people from the Myanmar side did not sign the Aung San-Attlee Agreement in England: Thakin Ba Sein and Galon U Saw. They refused to sign because they believed the agreement did not grant complete economic independence and still left Myanmar under British influence.

The Panglong Conference

After returning to Myanmar, General Aung San and his team convened the Panglong Conference in southern Shan State from February 3-12, 1947. This was actually the second Panglong Conference. The first one was held from March 20-28, 1946, as a Shan State handicraft exhibition, attended by prominent political figures like AFPFL Deputy Chairman U Nu and Galon U Saw.

The second conference is the historic Panglong Conference we refer to today, which General Aung San himself attended.

General Aung San's Plan to Leave Panglong

During the Panglong Conference, Kachin representatives demanded the creation of Kachin State, while Shan representatives insisted on the right to secede in the future. At that time, Kachin State did not exist, and most Kachin people lived in the hills rather than in Myitkyina or Bhamo, which were inhabited by Burmans, Shans, and other ethnic groups. The Kachin representatives' demand to include Myitkyina and Bhamo in Kachin State despite the small Kachin population there made negotiations difficult.

Frustrated by the inability to reach an agreement with Kachin and Shan representatives, General Aung San instructed his aide, Colonel Htun Hla, to arrange for a flight back to Yangon. When the people of Shan State learned about Aung San's plan to leave, they protested against the Shan Sawbwas, who then persuaded General Aung San to stay. This led him to cancel his departure.

Choosing the First President from Shan Nationals

During the Panglong Conference days, General Aung San considered nominating the Southern Shan Sawbwa Sao Khun Pan Sein as the first president of the independent nation. However, the Southern Shan Sawbwa declined the nomination. By the time Myanmar gained independence after Aung San's assassination, various circumstances prevented Sao Khun Pan Sein from becoming president. Instead, the Nyaung Shwe Sawbwa Sao Shwe Thaik became the first president of independent Myanmar.

The Panglong Agreement

On February 12, the Panglong Agreement was finally signed. The agreement was between General Aung San's Myanmar Interim Government and representatives from the Kachin, Shan, and Chin ethnic groups.

The essence of the agreement was that the hill peoples would join with the plains in seeking independence from the British together.

In reality, the Panglong Conference was held to address the concerns raised by the letter from the Sawbwas during the Aung San-Attlee negotiations in England. Prime Minister Attlee had pointed out that while Aung San had supporters, he also had opponents, so the wishes of the ethnic minorities needed to be determined. The Panglong Conference was convened to address this requirement.

Ethnic Groups Who Didn't Sign the Panglong Agreement

As mentioned, the Panglong Agreement was signed between the Myanmar Interim Government and representatives from the Shan, Kachin, and Chin ethnic groups. This means not all ethnic groups signed the agreement. There were two reasons for this: first, other ethnic representatives were already included in the Myanmar Interim Government cabinet; second, regions like Karen, Tenasserim, and Mon were considered part of mainland Burma due to cultural and population connections. Therefore, other ethnic groups didn't sign the Panglong Agreement. Although they didn't sign in 1947, these ethnic groups unanimously supported General Aung San's leadership and agreed to seek independence together with the mainland.

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Notably, representatives from the Kayah (then called Karenni) ethnic group, now Kayah State, attended the Panglong Conference as observers.

The Only Individual Who Didn't Sign the Panglong Agreement

Not only did some ethnic groups not sign the Panglong Agreement, but one specific individual whose name was on the agreement also did not sign. This is peculiar because his name appears on the historic Panglong Agreement, but his signature is missing. The agreement included 24 names for signatures, but only 23 people actually signed. These 23 included General Aung San representing the Myanmar Interim Government, 5 Kachin representatives, 14 Shan representatives, and 3 Chin representatives. The person whose name appears but did not sign was the Kachin representative Zau La (Bhamo). Thus, the Panglong Agreement lists 24 names but contains only 23 signatures. Why this Kachin representative did not sign remains a mystery to this day.

The Panglong Monument

After signing the Panglong Agreement, a monument was erected. General Aung San donated 1,000 kyats on behalf of the AFPFL government toward this monument. The stone pillar was originally inscribed as the "Union of Hill Peoples and Plains" monument. Later, after independence, during General Ne Win's administration in 1972, it was changed to the "Independence of Plains and Hill Regions" monument. On January 10, 2020, the inscription was restored to its original wording: "Union of Hill Peoples and Plains."

It has now been 78 years since the signing of the Panglong Agreement. The agreement was a historic decision made by ethnic groups to unite and seek independence together, appropriate for that era and circumstances. However, after General Aung San's assassination, Myanmar did not become the land of equality and purity that was envisioned. Now, with the ongoing civil war that emerged with independence, the spirit of Panglong has gradually diminished.

By Han Thit Eain (Y3A)

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