ASEAN Beat | Politics | Southeast Asia

Myanmar Junta Chief Resigns as Head of Armed Forces, Prepares to Take Presidency

Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing has engineered a civilian “transition” that will cement the military’s control over Myanmar’s political and economic life.

Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the head of Myanmar’s military junta, has taken a further step toward becoming the country’s president after resigning as the head of the armed forces.

In a ceremony in the capital Naypyidaw yesterday, Min Aung Hlaing handed over the position of commander-in-chief of ​the armed forces to Ye Win Oo, a close associate who was promoted to chief of ​the army earlier this month.

“I will continue ⁠to serve the interests of the people, the military, and the national interests of the country,” Ye Win Oo said in a speech, Reuters reported.

Separately yesterday, lawmakers in the Pyithu Hluttaw, the lower house of Myanmar’s parliament, nominated Min Aung Hlaing as one of two vice-presidential candidates. A third will also be nominated by the upper house (Amyotha Hluttaw), after which both houses will then convene to select a ​president. The two “unlucky” candidates will then become the country’s first and second vice presidents. A date for that vote has not been announced, but the junta previously announced that a new president would be selected in April.

The move follows a controversial three-phase election in December and January that was dominated by the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), which won 231 of the 264 seats up for grabs in the Pyithu Hluttaw and 108 of the 157 contested seats in the Amyotha Hluttaw.

Min Aung Hlaing, 69, was appointed commander in chief in 2011, the year after an election that initiated a surprising move toward political reform. This was terminated by the coup of 2021, which inflamed the country’s existing ethnic conflicts and brought the country to the edge of economic collapse.

Yesterday’s maneuverings were the ​latest step in Min Aung Hlaing’s efforts to stage a civilian transition that he has intended to help resolve the current civil war. He planned for an election and “transition” to civilian rule since the coup, but was forced repeatedly to delay the holding of elections due to the deteriorating security situation in much of the country. As a result of the war, 67 seats in the Pyithu Hluttaw have not yet been filled.

Needless to say, the whole “transition” process has been widely criticized by human rights groups and most impartial observers as a sham exercise designed to divide the opposition to military rule and secure the military’s domination of Myanmar’s political and economic life.

Min Aung Hlaing’s choice of Ye Win Oo to replace him as head of the armed forces is certainly consistent with this aim. The Irrawaddy described the general as a “longtime confidant” of Min Aung Hlaing who had served as the latter’s “eyes and ears.”

“All the dictators – from Ne Win to Than Shwe – appointed their confidants as military chiefs. Min Aung Hlaing has done the same by appointing Ye Win Oo,” the publication quoted a veteran political analyst as saying. “By choosing him, Min Aung Hlaing is ensuring that the new military chief will never challenge him as he assumes the presidency.”

This could also be strengthened by the appointment of a pliant figure to run the Union Consultative Council, a new five-member body that intended to oversee both the military and civilian administrations. The Council, which will be appointed by the president and is tied to the president’s five-year term, is likely intended to ensure that the military remains “aligned” with Min Aung Hlaing’s leadership once he ascends to the top office.

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Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the head of Myanmar’s military junta, has taken a further step toward becoming the country’s president after resigning as the head of the armed forces.

In a ceremony in the capital Naypyidaw yesterday, Min Aung Hlaing handed over the position of commander-in-chief of ​the armed forces to Ye Win Oo, a close associate who was promoted to chief of ​the army earlier this month.

“I will continue ⁠to serve the interests of the people, the military, and the national interests of the country,” Ye Win Oo said in a speech, Reuters reported.

Separately yesterday, lawmakers in the Pyithu Hluttaw, the lower house of Myanmar’s parliament, nominated Min Aung Hlaing as one of two vice-presidential candidates. A third will also be nominated by the upper house (Amyotha Hluttaw), after which both houses will then convene to select a ​president. The two “unlucky” candidates will then become the country’s first and second vice presidents. A date for that vote has not been announced, but the junta previously announced that a new president would be selected in April.

The move follows a controversial three-phase election in December and January that was dominated by the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), which won 231 of the 264 seats up for grabs in the Pyithu Hluttaw and 108 of the 157 contested seats in the Amyotha Hluttaw.

Min Aung Hlaing, 69, was appointed commander in chief in 2011, the year after an election that initiated a surprising move toward political reform. This was terminated by the coup of 2021, which inflamed the country’s existing ethnic conflicts and brought the country to the edge of economic collapse.

Yesterday’s maneuverings were the ​latest step in Min Aung Hlaing’s efforts to stage a civilian transition that he has intended to help resolve the current civil war. He planned for an election and “transition” to civilian rule since the coup, but was forced repeatedly to delay the holding of elections due to the deteriorating security situation in much of the country. As a result of the war, 67 seats in the Pyithu Hluttaw have not yet been filled.

Needless to say, the whole “transition” process has been widely criticized by human rights groups and most impartial observers as a sham exercise designed to divide the opposition to military rule and secure the military’s domination of Myanmar’s political and economic life.

Min Aung Hlaing’s choice of Ye Win Oo to replace him as head of the armed forces is certainly consistent with this aim. The Irrawaddy described the general as a “longtime confidant” of Min Aung Hlaing who had served as the latter’s “eyes and ears.”

“All the dictators – from Ne Win to Than Shwe – appointed their confidants as military chiefs. Min Aung Hlaing has done the same by appointing Ye Win Oo,” the publication quoted a veteran political analyst as saying. “By choosing him, Min Aung Hlaing is ensuring that the new military chief will never challenge him as he assumes the presidency.”

This could also be strengthened by the appointment of a pliant figure to run the Union Consultative Council, a new five-member body that intended to oversee both the military and civilian administrations. The Council, which will be appointed by the president and is tied to the president’s five-year term, is likely intended to ensure that the military remains “aligned” with Min Aung Hlaing’s leadership once he ascends to the top office.

Sebastian Strangio is Southeast Asia editor at The Diplomat. 

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