"“As ever, it is civilians who bear the brunt of the accompanying abuses that the Myanmar military soldiers inflict on the local populations. Furthermore, they do so with impunity. Documented for decades, yet without any real change, the Myanmar military which commit rape and sexual violence, extrajudicial killings, torture, forced labor and many other forms of violations against local ethnic populations, escapes justice.” A new decade has begun in Myanmar[1], yet the same problems that have blighted the country since independence, ethnic inequality, Burmanization, and military attacks in ethnic areas remain. Renewed fighting in Karen State, continuing fighting in Shan and Arakan States, and the struggle for ethnic nationalities to assert their identity have all been present in the first two weeks of this year. Yet the powers in Naypyidaw remain stuck on the same track, pushing a broken peace process and blaming ethnic groups for continued failures. At the Joint Implementation Coordination Meeting (JICM) held in Naypyidaw on 8 January, 2020, which was attended by leaders of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) signatory ethnic armed organizations (EAOs), the government, and the Myanmar military, State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi put blame on the EAOs for the failure of the peace process. In her opening remarks, she stated, “Concerning the case of having more armed conflicts, we would like to remind you of the fact that taking advantage by means of stronger armed forces or playing with the fancy of finding other new solutions will never bring solutions to the problems of our country.” The meeting, unsurprisingly, ended without substantive progress..."