"Despite the fact that Burma has a highly centralized unitary government system, the issue of federalism has been a major source of debate for decades. Ever since the formation of the independence movement, the various ethnic groups in Burma have wanted to transform the country into a federal union based on equality. The Panglong Agreement1 provided the basic foundation for this, but post-independence Burma did not become a federal union in spite of the urgent need for this. The non-Burman 2 ethnic groups in Burma have not given up their demands for federalism. Most of them are still engaged in insurgency movements against the central government,3 which has been dominated by Burmans since 1948. The ethnic insurgency movements emerged as a result of the government?s failure to deal with the demand for federalism peacefully. The non-Burman movement for federalism and political equality (the ‘Federal Movement?) has consistently tried to resolve the issue peacefully. The non-Burman ethnic groups even participated in the 1990 elections, with federalism as their main motive. In the elections, the UNLD (United Nationalities? League for Democracy, the alliance of ethnic parties in Burma) occupied the second largest number of seats after the NLD (National League for Democracy). However, federalism does not mean anything to the non-Burman groups unless the right to self-determination, including the right to secession, is part of it..."