Myanmar: historical ride towards Mandalay

During our busride to Mandalay I read some more about Myanmar and it's history. As Jihane already mentionned Myanmar was named Burma for a very long time and only since 2010 Myanmar is officially called Republic of the Union of Myanmar. But a lot of countries such as the United States do not accept this name and still call the country Burma. Since 2005 the capital of Myanmar is Naypidaw. The preceding capital was Rangoon, this is the largest city in Myanmar. Naypidaw, the capital, was build in view of becoming the capital. Again the United States and also Europe don't accept this change and still refer to Rangoon as the capital of Burma (Myanmar).

I also found out that 68% of the population is part of the ethnic group Bamar. This ethnic group lives near the Irrawaddy river valley and they speak the Burmese language, which is the most important and official language in Myanmar. The Bamar were originated from East Asia (China) and immigrated to the river valley 1200-1500 years ago. They usually have black hair and dark coloured skin.

Myanmar has a rough political history. Before the Second World War Myanmar was colonized by Britain. During the Second World War Japan invaded and destroyed large parts of Myanmar. Japan was exiled by the allied.

After the Second World War the inhabitants of Burma wanted their independence with Aung San as their leader. In 1947 Aung San was killed and one-year later Burma was independed as the 'Union of Burma'. But this union under management of President U Nu was very instable due to ethnical, national and political problems. Especially the other ethnical groups who wanted their part in ruling the country was the largest issue.

Since 1962 the country was ruled by a closed military junta under the management of General U Ne Win. A one party system in which the Burma Socialist Programme Party had all the political and governmental power. The economy was nationalised and independent coverage was illegal. The economical situation of the country was getting worst and this leaded to protest in 1988. Ne Win stepped down and the 'State Law and Order Restoration Council' leaded by Saw Maung took over. Under his authority many students and civilians were killed. In 1989 the name of the country changed again, this time into 'Union of Myanmar'.

In 1990 there were elections for the first time, these elections were won by the ‘National League for Democracy’ under management of Aung San Suu Kyi. She's the daughter of Aung San. These elections were never recognized and everyone from this 'National League for Democracy' was taken into prison. Also Aung San Suu Kyi who has lived under periods of house arrest since 2010. In 1991 she won the Nobel Peace Price.

In 1992 General Than Shwe became the president. A road to democracy was announced. The constitution was a goal but this was only created in 2008. This is described as a step into democracy but in fact still 25% of the seats of the parliament are reserved for the army...

In 2010 there were elections and in 2011 the military junta of Myanmar was separated. The power was handed down to President Thein Sein and the community.

The new constitution and the elections have changed a lot in Myanmar. The military still has a lot of power but there is a beginning in the democratically future of Myanmar.

When we arrived in Mandalay I knew so much more about this beautiful but pained country. Tomorrow we will discover Mandalay after getting some sleep.

Sweet dreams

Amina

Source: https://www.burmacentrum.nl/index.php

Article: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-483879/Key-events-Myanmars-political-history.html