Burma: the ruling junta dissolves the NLD, the party of Aung San Suu Kyi

Aung San Suu Kyi in Tokyo, Japan, October 9, 2018. (Illustrative image) REUTERS - POOL

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2 min

Myanmar's electoral commission, set up by the ruling junta, announced the dissolution of Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) party on Tuesday (March 28th). The NLD will see its status automatically cancelled from Wednesday, state television said. The announcement comes after the state of emergency was extended, more than two years after a coup in which the military overthrew the civilian government and sentenced the former head of government to 33 years in prison.

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The junta dealt the final blow to the only party capable of supplanting it in a new election. The next election, desired by the Burmese military to legitimize their power and subject to calls for boycott by the NLD, remains very hypothetical, given the civil war that is shaking the country. If all the conditions are met, the legislative elections could be held in the best case next November.

The NLD was one of the main political forces, historically opposed to the junta since its creation in 1988, in the aftermath of the uprising against the military regime. This party founded by the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize winner, Aung San Suu Kyi, had easily won the parliamentary elections in 2015 and 2020.

After the military coup, the party shattered. Aung San Suu Kyi and her right-hand man received very heavy prison sentences in puppet trials, many elected officials were killed in the weeks following the coup, and the rest live either in hiding or in exile.

Political parties in Burma have until Wednesday, March 29 to meet certain very restrictive conditions and for some new ones, to see their status extended or automatically dissolved. For a party to remain active, it must:

  • - recruit 100,000 members, no later than 90 days after registration; Previously, only 1,000 members were needed.
  • - open an account with a deposit of at least 100 million kyat, or about $35,000 at the current foreign exchange market (this is a new rule)
  • - open offices in at least half of the 330 cantons within 180 days of registration (this is also a new rule)
  • - participate in at least half of the constituencies nationwide; Previously, only three were needed.

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  • Burma
  • Aung San Suu Kyi