Myanmar’s junta-proxy parliament meets for first time since 2021 coup

Five years after armoured vehicles rolled through the streets of Myanmar’s capital and the generals tore up an election result they did not like, a new parliament sat for the first time on Monday.The legislature that convened in Naypyidaw was stacked almost entirely with allies of Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, the coup leader who ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021.In Myanmar’s recent election, held across barely a third of the country, the army-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) – created by the military in 2010 – won 81 per cent of available seats on a turnout of just 50 per cent in areas the military actually controls. Previous elections drew at least 70 per cent of voters to the polls.On Monday, the USDP’s chairman, retired brigadier-general Khin Yi, was duly elected lower house speaker: a role analysts regard as pivotal for the military in steering its agenda through the new legislature.Senior General Min Aung Hlaing attends a ceremony to commission new aircraft in the Mandalay region of Myanmar, on Thursday. Photo: Myanmar-military" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="6257" data-entity-type="organization">Myanmar Military True News Information Team/APScores of hand-picked military officers will join elected members in the bicameral parliament, known as the Hluttaw, in keeping with a constitution that reserves one-quarter of all legislative seats for the armed forces. That concentration of power gives the top brass effective control over the chamber, including, crucially, the power to determine who becomes president.