The coup got here after weeks of tensions between the civilian government and the military over the election results, with Gen. Min Aung Hlaing indicating last week that the 2008 structure might be “repealed” under certain circumstances.
The 2008 structure effectively allows the military to take power if it deems the country to be in a state of emergency that might trigger union dissolution or “national solidarity”. A state of emergency have to be declared by a civilian president, which happened on Monday when the declaration was signed by First Vice President U Myint Swe – who became acting president after President Win Myint was detained by the military.
On Monday, the United Nations, the European Union, Britain, Australia and Japan condemned the detentions, and the White House said Washington opposes “any try and alter the final result of the recent election or impede Myanmar’s democratic transition and can take motion against those responsible if These steps is not going to be reversed.”
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called on Myanmar’s military leaders to “immediately reverse these actions” and release Suu Kyi and other officials.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said Beijing was aware of what happened in Myanmar and was within the means of obtaining more information.
“China and Myanmar are good neighbors. We hope that all parties can resolve their differences within the framework of the constitution and law and ensure political and social stability,” Wang said at a daily news conference on Monday.
In Bangkok, Thai police clashed with protesters during an indication outside the Myanmar embassy within the capital, where no less than 200 people gathered. Police arrested no less than two people, based on Thai monitoring group iLaw.
In Tokyo, tons of of protesters wore masks and held portraits of Aung San Suu Kyi, demanding that the United Nations further condemn the detention of the country’s leaders.
ECONOMIC IMPACT
Zhiqun Zhu, who heads the department of diplomacy at Bucknell University within the US, said Washington’s statement was a “serious warning”.
Zhu, an authority on Chinese foreign policy and East Asian affairs, who wrote this book A Critical Decade: China’s Foreign Policy 2008-2018he added: “China likely urges all parties in Myanmar to stay calm and resolve differences through consultations moderately than military motion.”
Yun Sun, director of the China program on the Stimson Center think tank in Washington, identified that Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Myanmar lower than three weeks ago and Beijing was unlikely to understand the turn of events.
“It was clear that China supported the NLD government and looked forward to working with it in its second term, especially in promoting the China-Burma economic corridor,” Sun said, referring to a series of infrastructure projects supporting connectivity between Myanmar and China.
Peng Nian, deputy director and associate director of the National Institute of South China Sea Studies in Hainan, said political stability in Myanmar is a priority for China.
“This is the most important prerequisite for many Belt and Road Initiative projects in the country, especially the economic corridor being built with Myanmar,” Peng said, referring to Beijing’s ambitious plan to spice up global trade and connectivity.
The Yangon Stock Exchange, where only six firms are currently listed, said it had suspended trading attributable to a connection error, Bloomberg reported.
Several other assets were transferred to the military motion. Chinese rare earth mining firms corresponding to China Northern Rare Earth Group High-Tech Co and China Rare Earth Holdings Ltd, which source large supplies from Myanmar, fell on stock markets on Monday.
Singapore-listed conglomerate Yoma Strategic Holdings Ltd, which derives all its revenue from Myanmar, requested a trading halt, adding that it had ordered employees to work at home.
“Some of our businesses are experiencing intermittent disruptions due to telecommunications network outages, and our business executives are working closely with frontline staff to closely monitor the situation,” a Yoma spokesperson said.
On Monday, restrictions on communications networks resulted from disruptions to web connections and state media broadcasts. Soldiers and police were available throughout the riots near Yangon, where residents rushed to markets to restock supplies and others lined up at ATMs as banks were temporarily closed attributable to a communications freeze.
But aside from the police, there have been few uniformed men in the town, and no blood was shed.
Guns, tanks and helicopters were situated further north, near Naypyidaw, where armored vehicles blocked primary roads resulting in parliament.
02:26
Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi rejects Rohingya claims of genocide
Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi rejects Rohingya claims of genocide
THE RETURN OF DEMOCRACY
In Monday’s statement, he cited the federal government’s electoral commission’s failure to handle complaints about voter lists, its refusal to postpone latest parliamentary sessions and protests by groups dissatisfied with the vote.
The painful truth is that the Myanmar military has never left state power. They put Suu Kyi on an extended leash. Now they’ll give her a shorter leash
Maung Zarni, co-founder of Forsea, a grassroots network of pro-democracy researchers and human rights activists in Southeast Asia, said Monday’s events were a natural outgrowth of a structure that continues to strengthen the military’s power.
“The coup is constitutional, that is, legal,” he said. “Myanmar’s 2008 constitution – drafted by the military – pre-emptively legalizes coups against the elected government… Suu Kyi herself has sworn to uphold this constitution for the military, for the military and by the military.
“The painful truth is that the Myanmar military has never left state power. They put Suu Kyi on a long leash. “Now they will give her a shorter head start if she is ever allowed to play football with them under the 2008 constitution.”
The structure published in 2008 also reserves 25 percent. seats in parliament for the military and control of three key ministries in Suu Kyi’s administration.
Zarni added: “Coup or not, Myanmar will not be democratizing or developing economically so long as the military controls the principles of the sport.”
Suu Kyi, the daughter of Myanmar’s independence hero General Aung San, was once considered a beacon of human rights – a principled activist who gave up her freedom to challenge the ruthless army generals who ruled Myanmar for many years.
Still, she stays popular in Myanmar, and her NLD party said on Facebook on Monday that it had issued a pre-emptive call to reject any coup.
I actually have a growing feeling that nobody will really have the opportunity to manage what happens next
Analysts agreed that the situation in Burma can be a test for the foreign policy of the United States, which is anticipated to focus more on human rights issues under the present administration.
“Just on Friday, the United States joined other countries in calling on the military to not proceed the specter of a coup,” he said. “China will stand by Myanmar, just like when the military kicked out the Rohingya.
“The Biden administration has said it will support democracy and human rights. However, top military officers have already been disciplined, so it is not immediately clear what exactly the United States can do quickly.”
According to historian and writer Thant Myint-U: “The door has just opened to a completely different future. I have a growing feeling that no one will really be able to control what happens next.
“And remember that Burma is a country awash with weapons, with deep ethnic and religious divisions, where millions can barely feed themselves.”
Reporting by Reuters, Agence France-Presse, Bloomberg and Cheryl Heng
This article appeared within the print edition of the South China Morning Post as: Aung San Suu Kyi detained during military coup
