The United League of Arakan (ULA; Burmese: ရက္ခိုင့်အမျိုးသားအဖွဲ့ချုပ်) is an Arakanese political organisation based in Laiza, Kachin State, Myanmar. Its armed wing is the Arakan Army.[3][4] Major General Twan Mrat Naing is the ULA's chairman and Brigadier General Nyo Twan Awng is in the secretary. The United League of Arakan is the member of the Federal Political Negotiation and Consultative Committee (FPNCC), the political negotiation team formed by seven ethnic armed groups in Myanmar.[5][6]
United League of Arakan ရက္ခိုင့်အမျိုးသားအဖွဲ့ချုပ် | |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation | ULA |
| Chairman | Twan Mrat Naing[1] |
| Spokesperson | Khine Thu Kha |
| Vice Chairman | Nyo Twan Awng[2] |
| Secretary General | Twan Morn Naing |
| Founded | 2016 |
| Armed wing | Arakan Army |
| Membership (2025) | 10,0000+ |
| Ideology | Arakanese nationalism Confederalism |
| Anthem |
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| Party flag | |
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| Website | |
| www | |
History
editThe 1st United League of Arakan conference, attended by delegates from various countries, was held from 10 to 16 January 2016, seven consecutive days in a liberated area.[7] The ULA was organised by the 21 central committee members who Chairman, General Secretary, Secretary (1), Secretary (2), Secretary (3), Special Advisory Group. Twan Mrat Naing is responsible the chairman of United League of Arakan and Nyo Twan Awng is in charge of the secretariat. No other names announced.
Controversy
editThe Singaporean police force arrested those who were involved in the United League of Arakan's movements and they were deported back to Myanmar on 10 July 2019.[8] Myanmar police detained and arrested Arakanese youths repatriated from Singapore at Rangoon airport. In the Myanmar police force complaint the United League of Arakan led by Aung Myat Kyaw, who was the younger brother of Twan Mrat Naing, and three others Tun Aye, Than Tun Naing and Soe Soe was established in Singapore in 2013. There were about 86 members. Police allege that the members monthly pay the fees and they supported the monthly fees to the United League of Arakan and Arakan Army.[8][9]
However, the United League of Arakan was formed only in 2016, according to the Mrauk-U survey book. The book was written by Maung Maung Soe who received the Myanmar National Literature Award for 2017.[10]
From 16 to 17 April 2025, the ULA held a Sangrai festival in Thanchi Upazila in Bangladesh's Chittagong Hill Tracts. This sparked concerns about potential sovereignty issues.[11][12]
Rohingya crisis
editSince 2024, the ULA is continually attempting reconciliation with the Rohingya minority in its administered areas. This includes allowing freedom of movement in central Rakhine and Paletwa. However, considering the past actions of AA towards the Rohingya, and accusations of atrocities, the Rohingya community remains split in regards to the ULA's efforts.[13]
During the 2025 Eid al-Adha, the ULA repealed a 5% tax on donated Qurbani animals. After having villages submit reports with the number of animals and the names of donors, the animals were donated to Rohingya, Kamein, and other Muslim communities. in Maungdaw Township, Buthidaung Township, Kyauktaw Township, Mrauk-U Township, Minbya Township, Pauktaw Township, and Rathedaung Township. 50 sacks of rice were also distributed to each village.[14] [15]
Martial law
editOn March 2025, the ULA revealed a "National Defense Emergency Provision" where military-age men and women would be chosen for conscription, and those who are not severely ill are prevented from leaving AA-controlled areas of Rakhine State. Traders are also not allowed to bring "extra people."[16]
References
edit- ^ "ULA Leadership". ULA. 5 September 2018. Archived from the original on 5 September 2018.
- ^ "ULA / AA". Arakan Army. 4 May 2018. Archived from the original on 20 June 2019. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
- ^ "AA/ULA welcomes Chinese investment in Rakhine". Mizzima. 24 July 2019. Archived from the original on 9 November 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
- ^ Sandford, Steve (16 October 2019). "Myanmar's Arakan Army is Recruiting and Training to Fight Government". Voice of America. Archived from the original on 19 March 2020. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
- ^ "China meets with armed groups over Shan clashes". The Myanmar Times. 23 August 2019. Archived from the original on 4 November 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
- ^ "ULA/AA". ISP Peace Desk. 6 November 2019. Archived from the original on 8 November 2019. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
- ^ "Organization". ULA. 5 September 2018. Archived from the original on 5 September 2018.
- ^ a b "AA leader's sister, brother-in-law arrested at Yangon Airport". Eleven Media Group. 21 October 2019. Archived from the original on 9 November 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
- ^ "ရခိုင်အသင်း (စင်္ကာပူ) ခေါင်းဆောင်များ အမှု "မြောက်ဦးစစ်တမ်း"စာအုပ် သက်သေခံဝင်". The Irrawaddy Burma. 31 October 2019. Archived from the original on 2 November 2019. Retrieved 10 November 2019.
- ^ "၂၀၁၇ ခုနှစ်အတွက် အမျိုးသားစာပေဆုများ ထုတ်ပြန်ကြေညာ". MOI. 2018. Archived from the original on 17 November 2019. Retrieved 11 September 2022.
- ^ Arakan Army holds water festival 10km inside Bangladesh. April 21, 2025. Parbatta News
- ^ Arakan Army holds water festival 10km inside Bangladesh. April 18, 2025. The Chittagong Hill Tracts News
- ^ Rohingya Community Is Divided Over Arakan Army’s Plan for ‘Inclusive Administration’. The Diplomat. October 30, 2024. Rajeev Bhattacharyya. Archived October 30, 2024, at archive.today
- ^ AA donates sacrificial animals to Muslim community during Eid. June 6, 2025. Narinjara News
- ^ Rohingya Muslims Celebrate Eid al-Adha in ULA/AA-Controlled Areas. June 8, 2025. Rohingya Khobor.
- ^ AA’s Political Wing Imposes Rakhine Travel Ban. The Irrawaddy. May 23, 2025