Formerly known (and
often still referred to) as Burma, the area of Myanmar
was populated through 3 surges of emigration: by the Hmon
people from what is now Cambodia, next by Mongol people
from the eastern Himalayas, and finally by Thai people from
northern Thailand.
Unifying these diverse groups was a daunting task, first achieved
by the Buddhist King Anawratha, to mold the heart of a mighty
Kingdom created during the 9th century. It lasted 200 years and
was succeeded by the less
steady Kingdom of Pagan (presently known as Bagan). In 1287,
Pagan fell before the
occupying
Mongols, led by Genghis Khan’s
grandson Kublai Khan. After the downfall of the Mongol empire
at the end of the 14th century, Burma was sliced up between warring
tribes, with Siam (Thailand) the
influential
power in the region,
until the Tanugoo dynasty defeated
Siam and reunited the
country in the mid-16th century. By the mid-18th century, a new
dynasty was formed under King Alaungpaya with its capital
in Yangon but the country once again fell apart as the Hmon
tribes broke away to build their own kingdoms.
In 1824, the British, motivated by magestic aspirations and
impelled by recurrent border conflicts, took control of Burma as part
of British India. In 1937 Burma was given separate dominion
status. During World War II, the Japanese ejected
the British from Burma and tried to coopt Burmese political support
and offered
titular
independence under Japanese
influence. The rival
to the Japanese, who were
conquered
in 1944, was the centre of the
post-war
freedom
movement led by Aung San.
A greatly respected figure in
contemporary
Myanmar, Aung San
led the country to independence in 1948 but was unfortunately
murdered the same year. A 1962 military coup brought to power
Ne Win, who renamed the country Socialist Republic of
the Union of Burma and imposed an eccentric
autocratic
dictatorship.
In 1988, following years of unusual policies, isolationism
and incessant economic mismanagement by the then Burma Socialist
Programme Party at last resulted in a popular
rebellion, with
students and Buddhist monks, to the fore.
In September that year, the military took action. The demonstrations
were
cruelly
repressed
and the political upheaval quickly ended.
Far from threatening it, the putsch reinforced the position of Ne
Win; the coup leader, General Saw Maung, and his
senior staff were all known as long-standing supporters of the reclusive
dictator. Though Ne Win renounced his official title
as the country leader, he continued to exercise strong
power
over the running of the country. Ex-army General Tin Oo along
with the Western-educated liberal Aung Sang Suu Kyi, daughter
of Aung San, led the major domestic
antagonism.
After squashing internal political
hostility, the Ne Win
junta concluded in 1989 that some political compromises were essential
(mainly to
appease
international opinion) and declared that elections
would take place. The main rival movements campaigned under the
banner of the National League for Democracy, led by Aung
San Suu Kyi, and won in the May 1990 elections, gaining 80%
of the seats in the National Assembly. However, the regime
used complicated delaying tactics and harassment of opposition leaders
to maintain power; Suu Kyi herself was held under house arrest
and stayed there for 5 years.
The regime also had to endure several border insurrection: the most
effective of these was waged by the Karen tribe in the eastern
component of Myanmar, who were fighting for complete autonomy
and whose ranks periodically grew with
rebellious
students fleeing
from the capital. After military successes in the late 1990s, the
Karen insurrection became slightly quiet; however, there was
a sudden increase
in attacks against the army and main economic targets in 2003.
During the early 1990s, the regime, which now called itself the
State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC), had become
an international pariah. However, as the decade passed, changes
in the regime brought to the fore the ex-intelligence chief Khin
Nyunt as the new SLORC leader. A stronger figure than the ageing
and increasingly demented Ne Win, he re-armed and strengthened the
Yangon regime by developing vital means of revenue from logging,
gem deposits and drug trafficking.
In July 1997, Myanmar achieved full membership of the As sociation
of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN), thereby gaining a degree
of international legitimacy. Moreover, ASEAN policy emphasizes strict
non-
intervention
in the internal affairs of member states. SLORC’s
decision in November 1997 to rename itself as the more media-friendly
State Peace and Development Council was, perhaps, indicative of
its confidence.
The problem of ‘The Lady’, Aung San Suu Kyi would
not disappear. In September 2000, she was again put under house
arrest. But with the economy once again having serious difficulties
and Myanmar largely isolated from the rest of the world, the junta
had no choice but to negotiate. She was released, without conditions,
in May 2002.
The National League for Democracy, meanwhile, has been treated
with more tolerance than it previously had. This period lasted for
a little over a year; she was re-arrested in May 2003 and imprisoned.
As of December 2003, she was still being held, and once again the
junta is the subject of international sanctions. |
