Members of Aung San Suu Kyi’s victorious National League for Democracy (NLD) were in tears yesterday as Myanmar swore in its first president with no military ties in more than 50 years.
Htin Kyaw, a close friend and confidant of Aung San Suu Kyi, was hand-picked by her to run Myanmar’s government because a constitution drafted by the former junta bars the democracy champion from the top office.
In a short address to the chamber, Htin Kyaw reiterated Aung San Suu Kyi’s stance on the importance of changing the 2008 charter, which entrenches the military’s powerful position in politics, and called for national reconciliation.
Photo: Reuters
NLD lawmakers were emotional at the scale of the achievement after decades of struggle, including years when many of them were jailed or, like Aung San Suu Kyi herself, put under house arrest.
“I could not sleep last night. Our president Htin Kyaw’s speech is something we have never heard before in the country,” NLD Legislator Thiri Yadana, 28, said. “He promised that he will work for the country with the respect to our leader Aung San Suu Kyi. It is such a big step and this has happened because everybody pushed forward together.”
Relations between the armed forces and Aung San Suu Kyi will define the success of Myanmar’s most significant break from military rule since the army seized power in 1962.
“Our new government will implement national reconciliation, peace in the country, emergence of a constitution that will pave the way to a democratic union, and enhance the living standard of the people,” said Htin Kyaw, sporting the NLD’s traditional burnt-orange jacket. “We have the duty to work for the emergence of a constitution that is appropriate for our country and also in accordance with democratic standards.”
Tension had simmered in the run-up to the election in November last year and as the NLD prepared to take power. Aung San Suu Kyi wants to demilitarize Myanmar’s politics, but effectively needs the support of the military to do so.
The armed forces are guaranteed three ministries and control a quarter of parliamentary seats — enough to give them a veto over constitutional amendments and potentially limit the scope of Aung San Suu Kyi’s reforms.
Aung San Suu Kyi is poised to steer the government from within, acting as a super-minister overseeing education, foreign affairs, electric power and energy — and the president’s office.
Before Htin Kyaw addressed the parliament, he and two newly elected vice presidents held the junta-drafted constitution in their hands and took the oath simultaneously, repeating after Burmese Parliament Speaker Mahn Win Khaing Than:
“I will always be loyal to the Union of Myanmar and will always put non-disintegration of the union, national unity and perpetuation of sovereignty at the forefront,” the first line of the oath read.
Burmese Army Chief of Staff Min Aung Hlaing attended the ceremony.
Htin Kyaw, elected by the NLD-dominated parliament this month, runs a charity founded by Aung San Suu Kyi and has been a trusted member of her inner circle since the mid-1990s. He is not a lawmaker.
COMBINING FORCES: The 66th Marine Brigade would support the 202nd Military Police Command in its defense of Taipei against ‘decapitation strikes,’ a source said The Marine Corps has deployed more than 100 soldiers and officers of the 66th Marine Brigade to Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) as part of an effort to bolster defenses around the capital, a source with knowledge of the matter said yesterday. Two weeks ago, a military source said that the Ministry of National Defense ordered the Marine Corps to increase soldier deployments in the Taipei area. The 66th Marine Brigade has been tasked with protecting key areas in Taipei, with the 202nd Military Police Command also continuing to defend the capital. That came after a 2017 decision by the ministry to station
‘INVESTMENT’: Rubio and Arevalo said they discussed the value of democracy, and Rubio thanked the president for Guatemala’s strong diplomatic relationship with Taiwan Guatemalan President Bernardo Arevalo met with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Guatemala City on Wednesday where they signed a deal for Guatemala to accept migrants deported from the US, while Rubio commended Guatemala for its support for Taiwan and said the US would do all it can to facilitate greater Taiwanese investment in Guatemala. Under the migrant agreement announced by Arevalo, the deportees would be returned to their home countries at US expense. It is the second deportation deal that Rubio has reached during a Central America trip that has been focused mainly on immigration. Arevalo said his
‘SOVEREIGN AI’: As of Nov. 19 last year, Taiwan was globally ranked No. 11 for having computing power of 103 petaflops. The governments wants to achieve 1,200 by 2029 The government would intensify efforts to bolster its “Sovereign Artificial Intelligence [AI]” program by setting a goal of elevating the nation’s collective computing power in the public and private sectors to 1,200 peta floating points per second (petaflops) by 2029, the Executive Yuan said yesterday. The goal was set to fulfill President William Lai’s (賴清德) vision of turning Taiwan into an “AI island.” Sovereign AI refers to a nation’s capabilities to produce AI using its own infrastructure, data, workforce and business networks. One petaflop allows 1 trillion calculations per second. As of Nov. 19 last year, Taiwan was globally ranked No. 11 for
Israel yesterday said it has begun preparations for the departure of large numbers of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip in line with US President Donald Trump’s plan for the territory, while Egypt has launched a diplomatic blitz behind the scenes to try and head off the plan. The Trump administration has already dialed back aspects of the proposal after it was widely rejected internationally, saying the relocation of Palestinians would be temporary. US officials have provided few details about how or when the plan would be carried out. Trump yesterday said that Israel would turn Gaza over to the US after the