By Alexander Arnold | Illustration by Rena Wu | Layout by Airla Fan
INTRODUCTION On the morning of February 1st, 2021, the Tatmadaw, Myanmar’s military, deposed the democratically-elected National League for Democracy, the ruling party, in a coup d’etat, reinstating a military government not seen since the end of the 20th century. In doing so, they detained state counselor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint on several indictments, ranging from “violation of COVID-19 guidelines” to “importing walkie-talkies”. Separately, three other members of the NLD died while under police or military custody. The people were quick to respond: within the span of a few days, unions organized strikes, boycotts were arranged, internet campaigns were formed, and marchers rallied in the streets, all calling for an end to the military junta, the release of Aung Sang Suu Kyi, and
UNDEMOCRATIC DEMOCRACY Military rule is nothing new to Myanmar. In fact, much of the population are quite familiar with it, as Myanmar never saw proper and unimpeded democracy until 2011, having been trapped under rigid military rule for the 50 years before, since 1962. Just a mere decade later, Myanmar once again descended back into military rule. The return to military rule was not sudden, as over Myanmar’s decade of democracy, the military, though incredibly unpopular (as exemplified by humiliating spankings in general elections in 2015 and 2020, courtesy of the NLD), managed to continue to exert their power and influence over the country. In the end, Myanmar’s small stint with political reform was fruitless. Power never truly transitioned to the people as intended with democracy; instead, it remained with the Tatmadaw, who simply had to wait for the perfect excuse to restore their power.
54
ISSUE 24
XIAO HUA
a return to democracy. The military took exception to this, refusing to let any resistance off lightly, responding without reservation. Bloody scenes flooded the Burmese internet, as the military worked to suppress protests, with methods that do not fall short of maximum lethal force. A mere three months after the start of the coup, its ensuing bloody crackdown had left in its wake a death toll of over 700 civilians of all ages. Civil unrest is nothing new to the Southeast Asian region, especially in recent times. 2020 saw an increasingly unpopular monarchy in Thailand, unwelcomed job creation bills in Indonesia, an anti-citizenship bill in India, and encroaching anti-terrorism laws in the Philippines. But recent events in Myanmar and the rest of its bloody history teach us valuable lessons about power and its tenacious relationship with the tendencies of the human mind and nature, and the destruction it wreaks, given the right environment.
A healthy democracy requires checks and balances. These are what keep a government accountable and responsive. More importantly to keep in check though, are departments that inherently retain power because of the nature of their work, for example, law enforcement or military. Full democracy allows the people a say in military and law enforcement in terms of funding and size. This limits the power that these departments can have, thus keeping them in check, and prevents them from exerting power over the people. Not only that, but principles of democracy often filter into constitutions too, inherently contradicting the authoritarian and undemocratic nature of stratocracy. Constitution is also written to limit military power, further keeping them in check. Nothing went right for Myanmar when it came time for democracy to control the military. The 2008 Constitution
