Coup in Myanmar: Military arrest, detain politicians, installs former General as President

The military in Myanmar has declared a state of emergency for a year and installed a former general president, after a successful coup that saw the arrest and detention of prominent politicians.

The military-owned Myawaddy television station made the announcement on Monday.

A former general named Myint Swe, previously serving as vice president, has been installed as acting president.

However, under the state of emergency military commander-in-chief, Min Aung Hlaing has taken control.

The country’s de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, and numerous other government officials, along with leaders of smaller parties, were detained in pre-dawn raids across the country.

The country had been gripped by fears of a coup for days amid escalating tensions between the military and the ruling National League for Democracy (NLD) party, with the army refusing to rule out taking over and suggesting it could revoke the constitution.

Regional ministers and student activists were also among those detained, Wai Wai Nu, an activist from Myanmar’s Rohingya minority, said on Twitter.

The raids came just hours before a newly elected parliament was due to convene in Naypyitaw, the country’s capital.

The military had called for a postponement of the new term after claiming to have uncovered potentially widespread voter fraud during the general election in November.

However, they did not provide any direct evidence.

Suu Kyi rejected the call for a delay and other requests during a high-level meeting with the military last week, according to The Irrawaddy news website, which quoted an unnamed source.

In a statement last week, local election observers said that they found no significant irregularities during November’s poll, which the NLD won by a landslide.

“The results of the elections were credible and reflected the will of the majority of voters,” the statement said.

In a statement last week, local election observers said that they found no significant irregularities during November’s poll, which the NLD won by a landslide.

“The results of the elections were credible and reflected the will of the majority of voters,” the statement said.

Meanwhile, the United Nations, and the United States have condemned the coup.

UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, and the United States Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, reacted to the development in separate statements.

Although both officials did not call it a coup, they urged the military to respect the Burmese people’s will as expressed through the country’s November 8, 2020 elections.

Guterres and Blinken also called for the release of Myanmar’s State Counsellor, Aung San Suu Kyi, and other political and civil society leaders arrested and detained by the military.