The Karen National Union (KNU) slammed the government’s peace process on Thursday, saying that is proceeding the “wrong way” in its aim to create a federal republic, one of the goals of numerous armed ethnic groups that have been engaged in civil war with national forces over the last seven decades, RFA reported.

The KNU, a political organization that represents the interests of the minority Karen people and whose armed wing, the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), operates in mountainous eastern Myanmar, made the comment in an announcement about Karen New Year’s Day being celebrated on Jan. 6.

The KNU’s central executive committee said it does not agree with the way in which the process is being handled by State Counsellor’s Aung San Suu Kyi’s civilian-led government. The KNU said it would find a solution through informal meetings with government and national military officials.