Democracy News

Burmese Military Step Down Ahead of Elections
April 30, 2010
By: Benjamin Russell | Printer Friendly

Several Burmese military officials resigned their posts Monday night, prompting speculation that they would run in this years parliamentary elections, according to BBC News.  The elections will be the first in Burma since 1990.

“So far as I heard, about 20 ministers … and some deputy ministers will officially give up their military positions effective this week,” a government official told Reuters.  The ministers are expected to run as civilian politicians.

Twenty-five percent of Burma’s parliamentary seats are already reserved for the military, and analysts believe that former officers running under the guise of a civilian platform could strengthen the armed forces’ control over the country.

“It’s just part of the military’s attempt to secure its grip on state power in the post-election period,” a retired senior civil servant said.

The elections, expected to be held sometime this year, have been criticized by observers from Burma and the international community.  Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, whose National League for Democracy (NLD) was blocked from assuming power in the country’s last election, has been prohibited from running in this year’s contest.  Mrs. Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel laureate who spent years under house arrest for speaking out against Burma’s authoritarian government, is one of several democracy advocates unable to run because of rules barring convicted criminals from holding office.

The NLD will boycott the elections in protest of the restrictive electoral guidelines that prevented their leader from running. “How can the NLD in good conscience register themselves as a political party and participate in these elections when all of their leaders who have suffered so heavily for their engagement would be precluded from engaging with this new government,” says Jared Genser, Mrs. Aung San Suu Kyi’s international counsel and president of Freedom Now.

For previous news on Burma, please see:

Burma Election Boycott

Suu Kyi Opposes NLD’s Participation in Upcoming Election

Sources:

BBC News – Burma’s Leaders ‘Shed Uniforms for Polls’

Democracy Digest – Burma’s Generals Adopt Civilian Garb in Latest Faux Democracy Move