JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) – Myanmar’s army has staged a coup, detained leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other senior politicians and taken the country under a one-year state of emergency. Here are some possible reasons why the military has now taken over:
THE CONSTITUTION
The announcement on military-owned Myawaddy TV quoted Article 417 of the country’s constitution, which allows the military to take over in times of need. According to the broadcaster, the coronavirus crisis and the government’s failure to postpone the November election during the pandemic are reasons for the emergency.
The military drafted the constitution in 2008 and retained power under the charter at the expense of democratic, civilian rule. Human Rights Watch described the clause as a ‘coup d’etat’.
The constitution also retains the most important cabinet ministries and 25% of the seats in parliament for the army, a part that limits the power of a civilian government and excludes that the charter is amended without military support.
Some experts have wondered why the army would upset its powerful status quo, but others note the impending resignation of senior general Min Aung Hlaing, who has been commander of the army since 2011.
“There is internal military politics around, which is very opaque,” said Kim Jolliffe, a researcher on civilian and military relations in Myanmar. “It may reflect the dynamics and could be an internal coup and its way of maintaining power within the military.”
The army led Vice President Myint Swe, a former military officer best known to the international community, for leading the 2007 monarchy-led popular protest marches, known abroad as the Saffron Revolution. appointed by the government.
Immediately after being appointed president, Myint Swe handed over power to the country’s top military commander, senior gen. Min Aung Hlaing.
THE ELECTIONS
In the November election, Suu Kyi’s party won 396 of 476 seats in the lower and upper houses of parliament. The state union election commission confirmed the result.
But the army claimed shortly after the election that there were millions of irregularities in voter lists in 314 townships that could cause voters to vote several times or commit other ‘malpractices’.
“But they have not yet shown any proof of that,” Jolliffe said.
The Electoral Commission rejected the claims last week, declaring that there was no evidence to support them.
The military takeover took place on the first day of the new parliament after the election.
Instead, Suu Kyi and other lawmakers who would swear in office were detained.
A later announcement on Myawaddy TV said the army would hold an election after the one-year emergency and that power would be transferred to the winner.
WHAT HAPPENS NOW
Telecommunications came to a near halt in the morning and early afternoon. In the capital, it appears that access to internet and telephone has been blocked. Many people elsewhere in the country who could still access the internet have found that their social media accounts have been temporarily suspended.
Barbed wire roadblocks were erected over Yangon, the largest city, and military units began to appear outside government buildings such as the city hall.
Residents flocked to ATMs and food vendors, while some shops and homes removed the symbols of Suu Kyi’s party, the National League for Democracy, which usually adorn the city’s streets and walls.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
Governments and international organizations have condemned the takeover, saying it reflects the limited democratic reforms Myanmar has made.
“This is an extremely devastating blow to efforts to portray Myanmar as a democracy,” said Linda Lakhdhir, a legal adviser to Human Rights Watch. “The creditworthiness on the world stage has taken a huge hit.”
Watchdogs fear a further fight against human rights defenders, journalists and others who are critical of the military. Even before the current military takeover, journalists, advocates for freedom of speech and critics of the military have often faced legal action for criticizing it in public.
A US senator has raised the possibility of the United States re-imposing economic sanctions, which the US lifted when Myanmar went into civilian rule.
Myanmar’s military leaders “must immediately liberate the democratic leaders of Myanmar and remove themselves from the government,” said Democratic Senator Bob Menendez, the incoming chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “If not, the United States and other countries must impose severe economic sanctions, as well as other measures,” against the military and military leaders, he said.
Former US diplomat Bill Richardson has said the Biden government and other governments need to act quickly to impose sanctions. He also doubts Suu Kyi’s ability to lead, given her defense of the army’s actions against ethnic Rohingya Muslims.
“Because of Suu Kyi’s failure to promote democratic values as the leader of Myanmar, she must step aside and let other democratic leaders in Myanmar take the reins with international support and support,” Richardson said in a statement.