The Coup General’s “Performance” Over Five Years and the Realization of a Presidential Dream
By Kyawt Maung
It is an open secret known to all that the February 1, 2021, military coup was driven by the lust for power and the presidential ambitions of military leader Min Aung Hlaing. Today, that secret has been officially and clearly documented.
In the Union Parliament, born out of an election held by the military according to its own will after the coup, Min Aung Hlaing was appointed President today, April 3. This is a script written by the coup leader himself.
Min Aung Hlaing systematically planned to take off his military uniform and become the President he desired to be. When Vice President U Myint Swe—who aided the coup—was in poor health, Min Aung Hlaing reappointed himself as the Acting President. Now, he has secured the presidency he so desperately craved. However, the presidency he has taken is not a civilian government presidency representing the people; it is merely the presidency of a coup junta.
In essence, Min Aung Hlaing has ended his scene as the Coup General only to continue performing in the role of a Dictator President. As a Coup General, he has achieved quite a lot.
In the five-plus years since the coup as a General, Min Aung Hlaing has killed nearly eight thousand (8,000) civilians. For opposing the coup, over thirty thousand (30,000) political prisoners were arrested. To this day, more than fourteen thousand (14,000) political prisoners remain detained in various prisons.
He caused more than three million people to become internally displaced. He burned down over one hundred thousand civilian homes across the country. Through airstrikes, he killed nearly four thousand (4,000) civilians. By conducting mass killings from the air—such as in Pa Zi Gyi village, Kanbalu Township, Sagaing Region, where over 170 civilians including children were killed—he proved himself a champion of cruelty.
He carried out mass airstrikes against nearly 30 displaced persons, including women and children, in the Mung Lai Hkyet IDP camp in Kachin State. In A Nang Pa, Hpakant Township, Kachin State, he proved his unparalleled status in committing terrorist crimes by bombing and killing over 60 civilians. Beyond these areas, he committed mass-killing war crimes against civilians across the nation through various methods.
Coup leader Min Aung Hlaing did not just display unparalleled cruelty in arresting and killing civilians; he also succeeded in causing decay across political, economic, and social sectors.
During his five-year coup period, he managed to push nearly 50 percent of the country’s population into poverty. He led over 12 million Myanmar citizens into poverty and hunger. He succeeded in increasing corruption in the country, resulting in Myanmar ranking 170th out of 180 countries in global corruption indices.
He managed to drive the exchange rate from around 1,300 Myanmar Kyat per 1 US Dollar before the coup to over 7,000 Kyat. He ensured Myanmar’s inclusion in the list of the 10 least peaceful countries in the world. By enacting the conscription law, he forcibly drafted youth into the military, causing them to flee abroad and leading to the loss of their safety and future.
Internationally, coup leader Min Aung Hlaing became a criminal primarily responsible for genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. He is the criminal chief responsible for the genocide against the Rohingya.
He is subject to an arrest warrant issued by an Argentine Federal Court. He is under investigation for crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court (ICC). He has been sued for war crimes and crimes against humanity in a Timor-Leste court. Complaints have also begun in German and Indonesian courts to take action against military leader Min Aung Hlaing and his associates.
These stated facts are the “achievements” of Min Aung Hlaing during his time as the Coup General. Now, he has taken what he desired—the presidency—through a parliament formed by a sham election of his own design. Thus, Min Aung Hlaing has removed his uniform and become the President of a military government.
The path he traveled to realize his presidential dream was not easy. While independent domestic and international organizations that monitored the 2020 election stated it was a free result representing the majority of the people, he staged a fraudulent coup using the excuse of voting irregularities. In seizing power, he even violated the 2008 Constitution, which was designed to protect the military bloc.
When the entire nation protested against his coup, he demonstrated his brutality by shooting and killing unarmed civilians. As armed revolution against the military clique gained strength and territories were lost during Operation 1027, he had to ask China for help to reclaim some towns. He went down in history as the commander-in-chief who suffered the most military defeats in the history of the Myanmar military. Now, in the presidential selection staged according to his script, he showed his immense inferiority complex by ensuring a higher vote count than previous presidents.
Coup leader Min Aung Hlaing’s persistent dream of being “President of the State” has finally materialized. However, this position was not obtained through the will and representation of the people. It is a “Bloody Presidency” secured by killing countless innocent lives.
Min Aung Hlaing becoming President does not signify the emergence of a civilian government or a starting point for political change. It is merely a blood-stained script designed to prolong the military dictatorship in Myanmar. His presidency clearly demonstrates why the coup was staged and why the revolution against the coup and the military dictatorship must continue. Blood-stained hands cannot be washed clean by sham elections, non-representative parliaments, or presidential titles.
While coup leader Min Aung Hlaing may live grandly in Naypyidaw with presidential trappings, to the people, he remains only a brutal dictator and will never gain their representation.
Due to his “achievements” over five years as the Coup General, countless lives have been lost, the futures and lives of the youth have been destroyed or lost, and many towns and villages have been turned to ashes. All citizens have witnessed the worst war crimes. In this situation, those trying to wash the blood-stained hands of a global criminal president, and those bowing down to this criminal president, will only become historical culprits.
References:
- Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
- Data For Myanmar
- Myanmar Peace Monitor
- UN World Food Programme (WFP) and International Organization reports and indices.
