Aung San Suu Kyi Will Not Become Myanmar’s President

Aung San Suu Kyi may an icon of democracy in Myanmar, but she may not become the president of a country that has been under military rule for over fifty years.

Her National League for Democracy party nominated U Htin Kyaw to become the first head of state selected democratically of the country. A second nominee, Henry Van Thio, may become the vice president. On the other hand, a candidate will also be nominated by the military, which controls 25 percent of the legislature.

A vote will be taken before the end of the month following a short vetting process. The installation of the new president is scheduled on April 1. Suu Kyi requested her supporters to back the decision of the party prior to the revelation of the nomination. She appealed to the people to support the NLD since it is a significant step in the implementation of the expectations and desires of the voters supporting the party.

Aung San Suu Kyi was expected to negotiate an agreement with the military to allow the democracy icon to become the president of Myanmar even with a provision in the constitution preventing her from the position. Even as a number of closed-door discussions did not provide Suu Kyi the opportunity to become president, she said she is determined to rule the country through a proxy.

However, the military maintains its significant role within the new government since it retains control of the border security, interior and defense ministries. It also has considerable influence on the economy through businesses and conglomerates owned by the military.

Aung San Suu Kyi Will Not Become Myanmar’s President - image credit: bbc.com

Thant Myint-U said while developments are part of real political changes that can transform the country, the direction where these changes will take remains uncertain. Thant Myint-U is the grandson of U Thant, a former secretary general of the United Nations.

He said they are still working under the constitution initially created by the military around two decades ago. While it is not a democracy, it allowed the military to give the government some control of day-to-day administration of the country and provide some level of political freedom to the people.

The presidential candidate of the party, Htin Kyaw, is a graduate of Oxford and manages the education charity named after the mother of Aung San Suu Kyi, Daw Khin Kyi Foundation. The foundation provides assistance to people living in the poorest areas of Myanmar. He is also the former high school classmate of Aung San Suu Kyi and is a party loyalist. The second nominee is an ethnic Chin who became a member of parliament. Van Thio is expected to play a significant role in resolving an ethnic conflict within the country.

The international community has pressure the country to deal with the issues hounding the Muslim Rohingya who remain stateless since they were denied citizenship and are mainly confined in camps following an anti-Muslim wave in 2012. While the formal role of Suu Kyi remains uncertain, analysts have indicated she may become the foreign minister or a senior cabinet minister.

The jubilation in Yangon following the November 8 election was replaced with guarded optimism. Kaung Myat Linn, a Yangon University political major said the people who were hopeful that Aung San Suu Kyi will lead the country have remained vigilant since the army retain its power and the situation may take a turn for the worse.

Posted by James Fried on Wednesday March 16 2016, 8:48 PM EST. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Uncategorized. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0