Junta justifies plans for continued rule

By Mungpi
Mizzima News

March 21, 2008 - New Delhi – In a gesture to justify its forthcoming constitutional plans, Burma's military junta on Friday took pains to explain part of the contents of its draft constitution, which will be put forward for approval in May.

The Burmese military junta, which has plagued the country with over 40 years of disastrous rule, today said its plan to take 25 percent of seats in legislative bodies is aimed at balancing power between ruling and opposition political parties.

The explanation, written in the form of an article in the state-run media – New Light of Myanmar – said the participation of the military, known as the Tatmadaw, is immensely important in maintaining stability and in guaranteeing the progress of the country.

The article, written under the pseudonym Si Thu Aung, argues that the earlier electoral experiences of Burma clearly show that the ruling party neglects the peoples' voices and opposition views, which leaves the constitution as valuable as "a paper sheet."

Further, party politics forced groups to seek the support of independent representatives-elect and small parties in order to win more votes, prioritizing gaining political power over the national interest, the article said.

"Twenty-five per cent of seats in the legislative bodies are designated for Tatmadaw member representatives to be able to address such cases," the article reasoned.

The article, run in the junta's official mouth-piece, is the first official clarification on the contents of the junta's draft constitution.

While the full contents of the junta's draft constitution remain undisclosed, according to the '104 basic principles' drafted by the junta for the constitution, besides 25 percent of seats in legislative bodies, the military is vested with veto power to declare a state of emergency virtually anytime it wants without parliamentary oversight.

The principles also guarantee the military a place in the executive branch as the President will be elected only after the military's approval. The President is to be invested with enormous power and will work independently from the legislature and be granted immunity from prosecution.

With such points embedded in the constitution, critics say the junta prefers to keep the actual content of the constitution undisclosed and proceed to seek approval from the people via unscrupulous means.

Legal perspective

While the Burmese military junta claims that the draft constitution is drawn up under the guidance of legal experts and proclaims its legality, Aung Htoo, a lawyer from the Burma Lawyers Council, an exile-run organization, said the junta's constitution sets a new record for all the flawed constitutions that Burma has witnessed.

"In all democratic constitutions, there has never been a practice of giving parliamentary seats to the military to balance power," Aung Htoo said.

Aung Htoo, who has studied the junta's '104 basic principles', said the junta's claim of taking 25 percent of seats in legislative bodies means having unelected reserve seats in both the upper and lower houses.

Aung Htoo went on to comment that there has only been a practice of appointing Members of Parliament in the upper house, whereas the lower house has always been for elected representatives of the people.

"This justification for power balancing with the military is an odd idea and has never been practiced anywhere," Aung Htoo remarked.

He added that it is a clear indication that the junta does not want to give up their rule but merely intends to establish a puppet civilian government which they can showcase to both the internal and international community.

Aung Htoo said that per the junta's draft constitution the Tatmadaw will lead the cabinet, which in turn will actually deal with governing the country.

According to the draft constitution, a nominee for president of the country must have a military background. In other words, the President cannot be elected from among the civilian population, Aung Htoo continued.

Another feature of the junta's constitution, which is highlighted in the basic principles, is that any constitutional amendment requires 75 percent approval, a clause mainly intended to safeguard the constitution from amendment.

Aung Htoo believes that, "For a constitution so rigid, it needs an equivalent percentage of votes to approve it."

But the junta has not set any minimum percentage of votes to approve the constitution and does not draw any lines on how it will be approved.

Referendum process

Since the junta first announced its planned seven-step roadmap to democracy in 1993, there has been a wide-range criticism over the flaws of the process. However, over 14 years, the junta has managed to move on with its plan and has arrived at a crucial stage of the process.

The ruling junta, in early February, announced that it will hold a constitutional referendum in May followed by a general election in 2010.

While the junta prepares the groundwork for the forthcoming referendum by providing registration services and identity cards, even to ethnic ceasefire groups – whom the junta sees as forces supporting its constitution – critics maintain the process lacks transparency.

Critics say it is still unclear how the junta plans to tally the results of the polling with no declaration given as to the minimum percentage of votes required to approve the constitution or concerning the handling of abstentions.

Aung Htoo believes that with the junta so secretive of the referendum process, it is likely that the junta will use a simple majority to approve the constitution.

"In a simple majority, the junta will not count the abstain votes. For example, out of 100 voters if 30 abstain with 34 votes 'No' and 36 votes 'Yes', it will be counted as 'Yes', despite the 64 votes that do not support the referendum," Aung Htoo explained.

Yet even in the face of the junta's dubious plans, opposition leaders and groups both inside and outside Burma seem to be drifting in different directions in their responses to the upcoming poll.

While a few activist groups call on the people to participate in the referendum and vote 'No', several others urge a boycott through abstention.

While the rift among exile Burmese activists is mainly ideological, for the vast majority of people inside Burma it is mainly a lack of information on the constitution and a sense of lost hope with respect to opposition groups coming up with any concrete solution.

Despite the junta's claim that it widely circulated the contents of the constitution in the New Light of Myanmar in 2007, today's article is the first that debates and justifies the junta's stand.

Possible wrong choice

The junta claims that at least 24 million people, nearly half of Burma's population, are members of its puppet organization, Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA). And sources say members of USDA are being provided various means of assistance to support the junta's constitutional plans.

Moreover, junta officials are reportedly visiting places along the frontier, particularly in Shan and Kachin States, and meeting members of ceasefire groups and providing identity cards making them eligible to vote.

Aung Kyaw Zaw, a Burmese analyst based on the China-Burma border earlier told Mizzima that many ceasefire groups are ready to cast their votes in the upcoming referendum.

Aung Htoo concluded that "if the junta's expectations are to be understood, then the opposition cannot afford to lose their votes by boycotting the poll, rather it is necessary to vote 'No'."