In particular, there was pressure from the US Congress to address the Rohingya issue prior to the US providing diplomatic and material support to the government in exile. The seat is important, as it reflects the will of the international community regarding the legitimate Myanmar government. The UN was expected to make a formal decision on recognition in the lead-up to the current general assembly session. That means the current ambassador, Kyaw Moe Tun, was able to participate in the opening of the general assembly session, although the agreement required him to refrain from using any tough rhetoric against the military.
Nevertheless, this was a big win for the NUG. This overt call for violence has caused unease in some quarters, although criticism from the US and UK embassies in Myanmar is relatively muted. The Constitution took some power away from the military generals who adopted it, but offered them some compensations. It was criticised for being less a charter for democracy than the generals' retirement plan. The constitution gives the military a quota of 25 per cent of the seats in each of the two houses of parliament and control over the important ministries of home affairs, border affairs and defence.
Moreover, the constitution enshrines military prerogatives and it requires the approval of 75 per cent of all representatives in parliament and a majority of votes from those eligible to vote in a nationwide referendum to amend important articles. In a democratic system, regular free and fair elections are the most important characteristic. Beyond this, democracies should guard against all-powerful central governments, and one way they can do this is by decentralising government to regional and local levels, on the understanding that all levels of government must be as accessible and responsive to the people as possible.
But this is not yet the case in Myanmar, because the military has ultimate control over the bureaucracy at all levels. At the same time, the current ruling government is not doing enough to strengthen local democracy.
Myanmar has three types of elections: general elections, local elections for municipalities and elections held for ward and village tract administrators.
For example, the general election is held on the basis of one vote per citizen, while the local level elections are held on the basis of one vote per household. The general election is authorised and managed by the Union Election Commission UEC , which has the primary duty of holding a free and fair election that should be accepted and trusted by all people to build a strong and genuine democratic system. But this level of scrutiny is not applied to the more local-level elections, which are more ceremonial than truly democratic.
Municipal elections are the most decentralised form of government that can be found in Myanmar, but the Myanmar Constitution does not provide for a third tier of government at the local level and does not mention the existence of municipal committees.
Each township now has a development affairs organisation DAO si-bin tha-ya-ye apwe in the Myanmar language to carry out municipal functions for its constituents. Municipal governance is a key exception to the current structure, as municipal agencies are the only fully decentralised bodies in Myanmar. They are unique, as they raise all revenue from their own township and have significant discretion over the use of these funds, provide a significant range of social services and are responsible for overseeing local economic governance as part of a broad remit of local governance processes.
Yet municipal committees in most townships have been formed mostly in a random fashion by selecting the appropriate candidates rather than by going through a complete electoral process. The ward or village tract administration is the main day-to-day bridge between communities and the state. Read full media profile. The ruined city of Pagan, capital of the Kingdom of Pagan.
A million Muslim Rohingya reportedly fled persecution at the hands of the military and locals who burned villages to the ground in Read full timeline. Related Topics. Aung San Suu Kyi Myanmar. This would allow the more authoritarian member countries to continue to liaise with the junta. While ASEAN itself may be unable to resolve the crisis under these conditions, individual ASEAN members might still realistically contribute to resolving it through coordinated engagement.
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