Country moves closer to full democracy
NAYPYITAW, Myanmar — Myanmar’s slow transition to democracy took a momentous step Wednesday as a trusted aide to ruling-party leader Aung San Suu Kyi took over as the country’s president, ending more than 50 years of the military’s control over government.
In a day full of ceremony, Htin Kyaw was sworn in along with his two vicepresidents and 18 cabinet ministers. Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace laureate and face of Myanmar’s pro-democracy movement, takes on a prominent role as the new foreign minister and the head of three other ministries — education, energy and the presidential office.
Htin Kyaw, 70, pledged to work toward national reconciliation, strive for peace with warring ethnic rebels and improving the lives of Myanmar’s 54 million people.
While it was a historic day for the impoverished southeast Asian country, democracy remains incomplete. The military retains considerable power, and the president will play second fiddle to Suu Kyi. She cannot be president because of a constitutional manipulation engineered by the military, and has said she will run the country from behind the scenes.
“I am very happy that we have a president who represents people,” said Mar Thin, a 50-year-old street cleaner. She said she used to own 28 hectares of land that she and her sister inherited from their father before the military kicked them out and appropriated the land for the defence ministry.
“I hope that the new government can ... let us own our land as farmers. All we want is enough food, and to live without fear. I hope that President Htin Kyaw will do that for us because Daw Suu promised us a lot of things, and we love her too,” Mar Thin said, using an affectionate term for Suu Kyi.
U.S. President Barack Obama noted the continuing challenges for Myanmar, also known as Burma, in a statement in which he called Htin Kyaw’s election “a historic milestone in the country’s transition to a democratically elected, civilian-led government.”
“Burma will face significant challenges going forward, including achieving broad-based economic development, advancing national reconciliation, and promoting the rights and freedoms of all its people,” Obama said.
It was Suu Kyi who led her National League for Democracy party to a landslide win in November elections, ushering in Myanmar’s first civilian government after 54 years of direct and indirect military rule.
Suu Kyi endured decades of house arrest and harassment by military rulers without giving up on her nonviolent campaign to unseat them. The constitutional clause that denied her the presidency excludes anyone from the position who has a foreign spouse or child.
Suu Kyi’s two sons are British, as was her late husband. The clause is widely seen as having been written by the military with Suu Kyi in mind.
She has repeatedly made it clear that she will run the government from behind the scenes, and in his speech on Wednesday, Htin Kyaw paid obeisance to Suu Kyi.
“The new parliament and new government are formed in accord with the policies of the National League for Democracy led by Aung San Suu Kyi,” he said.