Myanmar’s historic multi-party election !!
Week : [8-15 November]
The landslide victory for Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) in Myanmar’s historic multi-party election is a great triumph in the annals of contemporary political struggles.
It marks a stunning comeback for a woman —- revered as ‘The Lady’ —- who was robbed of a similar win in 1990 by the military.
Subsequently, she survived 15 years of imprisonment and decades of crackdowns on her party by the country’s military rulers.
Although this election has been one of the freest in Myanmar since the ill-fated one in 1990, the NLD entered the fray with a vast disadvantage vis-à-vis the ruling military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USPD).
Suu Kyi’s win is comparable to Nelson Mandela’s ‘Long Walk to Freedom’.
But, military-written Constitution has already disqualified her from assuming the top office of the country on flimsy grounds. Moreover, there is a military-appointed block of 25% of parliamentarians who will never permit the NLD, no matter how many MPs it commands, to amend the Constitution.
Suu Kyi faces two challenges: Having to appoint a ‘proxy President’ who must be loyal enough to take orders from her, and to fulfill the expectations of Myanmarese people for civil liberties, peace with minorities, federalism and economic development without enjoying full civilian control over the State structure.