Familiar faces among new Burmese MPs
Tim Johnston in Bangkok | Saturday, 2 April 2011
Tim Johnston in Bangkok
Burma's generals have handed over power to the government elected in November's ballot -- but despite the new structure many of the same people will continue to run the country. Thein Sein, a retired general who is also the outgoing prime minister, was sworn in on March 30, 2011 as president at the new parliament, which is to take over from the State Peace and Development Council, the junta that has run the country since 1988. "It is hereby announced that the legislative power, jurisdiction power and administrative power being exercised by the State Peace and Development Council has been transferred to the union level government," said Senior General Than Shwe, who has run the country since 1992. Optimists hope the handover to a nominally civilian administration will mark a new start for a country under military rule for 49 years. Pessimists say it is mostly made up of former generals and that Gen Than Shwe, who has exercised absolute control over the transition, has installed allies in all important posts. "This is the moment that the hopeful people are looking to," said Khin Omar, of the Network for Democracy and Development, an exile pressure group. But she has low expectations. "They are going to change some people, but it is not going to make a change on the ground." The handover is an important part of the generals' seven-step programme for "discipline-flourishing democracy", but the emphasis still seems to be on the discipline rather than the democracy. The constitution reserves 25 per cent of the seats in the two national and 14 regional assemblies for serving military officers, and gives the army chief wide latitude to suspend democratic institutions and to reimpose military rule if he were to see fit. Even optimists see small hope of swift change, but think friction between different power centres -- the executive, the army, the new parliament and governing party -- could form some democratic space. What role Gen Than Shwe will play in the new administration is unclear. The chief constitutional roles are filled, and he is expected to step down as head of the armed forces. Many observers interpreted the changes as an attempt by the 78-year-old general to step away from day-to-day running of the country while protecting himself and his family fortune from any backlash. "[Perhaps] he believes that he has diffused power sufficiently widely that there is no way that anyone could amass enough influence to mount a challenge to him," said a Rangoon-based analyst. Gen Than Shwe seems to have chosen Mr Thein Sein for his loyalty and lack of ambition to challenge his mentor. The new president, 65, became premier in 2007. He has a reputation for personal probity, but he has a heart condition. At least one vice-president is known as a military hardliner. The National League for Democracy, led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, chose not to participate on the grounds the constitution driven through by the generals in 2008's discredited referendum precluded a democratic outcome. FT Syndication Service
Burma's generals have handed over power to the government elected in November's ballot -- but despite the new structure many of the same people will continue to run the country. Thein Sein, a retired general who is also the outgoing prime minister, was sworn in on March 30, 2011 as president at the new parliament, which is to take over from the State Peace and Development Council, the junta that has run the country since 1988. "It is hereby announced that the legislative power, jurisdiction power and administrative power being exercised by the State Peace and Development Council has been transferred to the union level government," said Senior General Than Shwe, who has run the country since 1992. Optimists hope the handover to a nominally civilian administration will mark a new start for a country under military rule for 49 years. Pessimists say it is mostly made up of former generals and that Gen Than Shwe, who has exercised absolute control over the transition, has installed allies in all important posts. "This is the moment that the hopeful people are looking to," said Khin Omar, of the Network for Democracy and Development, an exile pressure group. But she has low expectations. "They are going to change some people, but it is not going to make a change on the ground." The handover is an important part of the generals' seven-step programme for "discipline-flourishing democracy", but the emphasis still seems to be on the discipline rather than the democracy. The constitution reserves 25 per cent of the seats in the two national and 14 regional assemblies for serving military officers, and gives the army chief wide latitude to suspend democratic institutions and to reimpose military rule if he were to see fit. Even optimists see small hope of swift change, but think friction between different power centres -- the executive, the army, the new parliament and governing party -- could form some democratic space. What role Gen Than Shwe will play in the new administration is unclear. The chief constitutional roles are filled, and he is expected to step down as head of the armed forces. Many observers interpreted the changes as an attempt by the 78-year-old general to step away from day-to-day running of the country while protecting himself and his family fortune from any backlash. "[Perhaps] he believes that he has diffused power sufficiently widely that there is no way that anyone could amass enough influence to mount a challenge to him," said a Rangoon-based analyst. Gen Than Shwe seems to have chosen Mr Thein Sein for his loyalty and lack of ambition to challenge his mentor. The new president, 65, became premier in 2007. He has a reputation for personal probity, but he has a heart condition. At least one vice-president is known as a military hardliner. The National League for Democracy, led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, chose not to participate on the grounds the constitution driven through by the generals in 2008's discredited referendum precluded a democratic outcome. FT Syndication Service