Myanmar’s parliament reconvenes for the first time since the 2021 coup, dominated by pro-junta lawmakers elected in a stage-managed poll.
NAYPYIDAW: Myanmar’s parliament convened on Monday for the first time since the military seized power five years ago. The session is dominated by lawmakers from the military and its political allies, elected in a poll widely criticised as a sham.
The majority of MPs belong to the pro-military Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP). The remainder are largely serving military personnel, who are constitutionally entitled to a quarter of all parliamentary seats.
The lower house convened first, with the upper house scheduled to sit on Wednesday. Their initial task will be to elect speakers for both chambers.
The last general election in 2020 delivered a landslide victory for Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy. The military annulled the result, detained the Nobel laureate, and disbanded her party, plunging the country into civil war.
After years of conflict, the junta orchestrated a phased re-run of the vote in December and January. Democracy watchdogs reported the process outlawed criticism and heavily favoured the military’s civilian allies.
The vote could not be held in vast areas of the country under rebel control. Analysts describe the new parliament as a military proxy, designed to lend a veneer of legitimacy to junta rule.
Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing is widely tipped to swap his military uniform for the civilian role of president. The new government is expected to take power next month.
The president will be selected by a vote across both houses of parliament. These are now filled with MPs who either support the military or are currently serving within its ranks.
Some analysts believe Min Aung Hlaing may remain as military chief to control the government from behind the scenes. “Who knows what role he will play, but he clearly will be in charge and the military will be clearly in charge,” said the UN’s outgoing Myanmar rights expert, Tom Andrews.
“This will be a military junta in civilian clothing,” he told AFP last week.
The military has ruled Myanmar for most of its modern history. A decade-long democratic experiment ended with the 2021 coup, which analysts say was triggered by the junta’s anxiety over its waning influence compared to Suu Kyi’s popular movement.
The putsch ignited a civil war, with pro-democracy forces joining ethnic armed groups long in conflict with the state. The USDP, founded by a former general and staffed by retired officers, won over 80% of contested seats in the recent election.
Serving military officers also hold key cabinet posts. The 2008 constitution, drafted by the army, entrenches its political power by reserving a quarter of all parliamentary seats for uniformed personnel.
The Sun Malaysia
