CNI News

28 May 2025

AFP Party Chairman Dr. Aye Maung explained the political and economic policies of the Arakan Front Party (AFP) that will run the elections in Myanmar so that the public can understand.

The AFP has two political policies: the first focuses on the border areas of Buthidaung and Maungdaw in northern Rakhine State, and the second aims at building a genuine federal democratic state that all ethnic groups desire, Dr. Aye Maung told CNI News.

“Since the formation of the party, we have had two principles. One is to focus on the northern part of Rakhine State, the border areas of Buthidaung and Maungdaw. If we cannot secure and protect these border areas, the future of Rakhine State will not be sustainable for long. This is stated in our party constitution as the number one objective of establishing the party. Number 2 is the goal of building a truly federal democratic state that all ethnic groups desire. When the country went with a multi-party system, revolutionary armed groups and those who found a solution politically were not able to prove a solution that cannot establish a genuine federal union by holding a political dialogue. That's why the risk of armed conflict is increasing. That is why the idea that armed resistance is the only way to achieve self-determination is currently at its highest level. So, we must prove that finding solutions through political dialogues, and breaking out of the vicious cycle are the right path," he said.

The headquarters of the Arakan Front Party in Sittwe, the capital of Rakhine State, was seen on August 25.(Khun Latt, Frontier Myanmar)

The armed conflict in Myanmar has been ongoing for over 70 years, starting in 1948. Similarly, despite repeated talks to end the armed conflict, no lasting agreements have been reached, and agreements have repeatedly broken down, leading to fighting.

Then, widespread armed conflicts broke out across the country due to political differences on February 1, 2021. Currently, efforts are being made to build a federal and democratically based union, but some ethnic armed groups are even expressing goals such as confederation and independence.

Dr. Aye Maung

“The economy is a market economy, so we have to go with an economy based on agriculture, trade in the natural resources that the country can produce, and economic development can only be achieved with political stability. It is not easy to develop the economy without the development of farmers, who constitute the country’s foundation and who make up more than 75 percent of the population. In addition, the economy cannot develop without attracting investment and industrial development. That is why we should negotiate and implement a comprehensive national economic policy that will ensure political stability and economic development so that people who have been abroad in various ways can return home," Dr. Aye Maung, chairman of the Arakan Front Party (AFP), told CNI News.

The SAC Chairman Senior General Min Aung Hlaing said on May 19, 2025 that the goals and objectives in agriculture have not been met, and that oilseed yields are still weak and imports are still required. He also said that although Myanmar has good land and labor resources, there is no real work and the income is low.