Asian_Geographic_Issue_4_2017

(John Hannent) #1
top Buddhists rally in Sittwe
to request the deportation
of the Rohingya people to
Bangladesh

above Rohingya activist Abu
Tahay poses with documents
that certify the existence of
the Rohingya people – even
before British colonisation

A transition period began, and with inspiring
results: Political prisoners were freed, ceasefire
agreements were negotiated with a dozen armed
ethnic groups, and the world responded with open
arms, lifting the embargo that had been crippling
the economy for years.
Companies from all over the world flocked to
Myanmar in search of a virgin market to explore, and
people dreamed of a democratic president, something
that the former British colony hadn’t seen since 1962.

The young activist was right: The NLD won a


landslide victory and secured the presidency with 360


out of the 652 votes in parliament, where the army still


holds 25 percent of the seats. “That gives the military


veto power on any constitutional amendment, and it


also keeps three key ministers. It’s going to be tough to


reform the current system, but we believe change will


come fast,” Thway said before the elections.


Now, almost a year and a half after Htin Kyaw was


sworn in, optimism has faded and disappointment


has set in. Promises are proving empty and little has


improved in the country. Even Thway doesn’t show


much enthusiasm anymore. “I’m not sure whether


we were wrong or whether hopes were just too high.


But the government is definitely not living up to


the expectation,” he shares. For many people, that’s


an understatement. Since the elections, even the


unthinkable has happened: People have marched


on the streets to express anger at Suu Kyi – who was


practically a deity for many before. She has had to


concede that things aren’t going smoothly.


“If you think I am not good enough for our country


and our people, if someone or some organisation can


do better than us, we are ready to step down,” Suu


Kyi said in a televised address to the nation on the


commemoration of the first anniversary of democracy


in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma.


In the latest by-elections held in April 2017,


the NLD won only nine of the 19 seats up for grabs.


This stood in harsh perspective compared to the 2012


by-elections (the first in which the NLD was eligible),


where Suu Kyi won 43 out of the 44 seats, securing


her ticket into parliament. “She has proven to be just


another politician,” criticises Zin Mar Lin, from the


Brave New Burma Federation.


The eroding figure of Suu Kyi shows that not


everything is rosy in the democratisation process.


Myanmar’s transition to democracy has been lauded as


a glowing example of how a dictatorship can turn into


democracy without a bullet being fired – because the


generals decided to hang up their uniforms and turn


the military junta into a civil government in 2011.


“If you think I am not good


enough for our country and our


people, if someone or some


organisation can do better than


us, we are ready to step down”


Aung San Suu Kyi


IMAGES © ZIGOR ALDAMA

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