[Myanmar] Ethnic Leaders Say Govt Minorities List Attempt At Divide And Rule

Ethnic minority political parties dismissed the Burmese government’s recently published official list of “recognized ethnic groups†in the country as an attempt at divide and rule, Eleven Media reported on Wednesday. The National Brotherhood Federation said the government was inflating the number of ethnic groups to make it harder for them to exercise their rights. A member of parliament from Kachin State, U Aung Thein, said the classification of 135 ethnic groups was “like someone not knowing how many members there are in his family.â€