Myanmar Icon Aung San Suu Kyi Wins Parliamentary Seat

[Lite Beer]

Myanmar icon Aung San Suu Kyi wins parliamentary seat

Yangon - Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi on Sunday won a parliamentary seat in a by-election that was heading for a clear victory for her National League for Democracy party.

Suu Kyi won in 112 out of 129 polling stations in Kawhmu township, 30 kilometres south of Yangon, according to the public vote counts by authorities and reported by the NLD at their Yangon headquarters.

"Mother Suu, Mother Suu," NLD supporters shouted outside the office in jubilation. The government had not officially acknowledged the win, a process that could take a week.

Initial vote counts had the NLD winning in more than 30 of the contested 45 seats in this by-election, necessitated after the current cabinet assumed office a year ago. Initially 48 seats were to be contested but voting was postponed in the Kachin State due to security concerns.

-- The Nation 2012-04-01

[Lite Beer]

Myanmar opposition claims landslide Suu Kyi win

by Hla Hla Htay

YANGON, April 1, 2012 (AFP) - Myanmar's opposition claimed a historic victory Sunday for pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi in her bid for a seat in parliament, sparking scenes of jubilation among crowds of supporters.

Hundreds of people clapped and cheered as a giant screen outside her National League for Democracy (NLD) party headquarters in Yangon announced the Nobel Peace Prize winner had won a parliamentary seat for the first time.

Some people wept with joy at the news, which if confirmed would mark a stunning turnaround for the former political prisoner, who was locked up by the former junta for most of the past 22 years.

"We have been waiting for this day for a long time. I'm so happy," said NLD supporter Kalyar, who goes by one name.

Suu Kyi took an estimated 82 percent of the vote in Kawhmu constituency, according to NLD senior member Tin Oo, based on the party's own unofficial tally of the by-election. Official results were expected within a week.

The party also claimed it had won at least 10 of the other 45 seats at stake in the vote, which cannot threaten the army-backed ruling party's majority.

Observers believe Myanmar's new reform-minded quasi-civilian government wanted Suu Kyi to win a place in parliament to burnish its reform credentials and smooth the way for an easing of Western sanctions.

Many of her supporters had earlier waited for hours in searing heat to catch a glimpse of the 66-year-old Suu Kyi, who was running for political office for the first time.

Her main rival in the rural Kawhmu constituency, two hours' drive from Yangon, was a former military doctor with the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party.

Voters, some in traditional ethnic Karen dress, queued patiently to cast their votes. In stark contrast to life under the junta, many openly expressed their support and affection for "The Lady".

"There's only been one person for us for 20 years," said Tin Zaw Win.

"We believe in her and want to vote for her. Almost my whole village will vote for Aunt Suu," he added.

Some people complained that their names were missing from the voter lists, although it was unclear how many were affected.

"I want to vote for Mother Suu but they haven't given me my ballot paper so I'm here to demand it," Zin Min Soe told AFP at a polling station.

"They can't just lose my vote," he said.

The polls were also marred somewhat by allegations of ballot-paper irregularities, notably that wax had been put over the check box for the NLD that could be rubbed off later to cancel the vote.

It was not immediately clear how widespread irregularities were.

"This is happening around the country," NLD spokesman Nyan Win told AFP. "I have sent a complaint letter to the union election commission."

In the run-up to the eagerly awaited vote, the party decried alleged intimidation of candidates and other irregularities.

Suu Kyi said on Friday that the poll could not be considered "a genuinely free and fair election" but stopped short of announcing a boycott.

A 2010 general election, won by the military's political proxies, was plagued by complaints of cheating and the exclusion of Suu Kyi, who was released from seven straight years of house arrest shortly afterwards.

The seats being contested Sunday were made vacant by MPs who joined the government.

The NLD swept to a landslide election victory in 1990, but the generals who ruled the country formerly known as Burma for decades until last year never recognised the result.

A gruelling schedule of rallies and speeches took its toll on the opposition leader, who cancelled campaigning in the week before the vote after she fell ill.

Suu Kyi appeared to have recovered her strength by election day, smiling broadly when she emerged just after dawn from the village house where she was staying in Kawhmu.

After almost half a century of military rule, the junta in March last year handed power to a new government led by President Thein Sein, one of a clutch of former generals who shed their uniforms to contest the 2010 election.

Since then, the regime has surprised even its critics with a string of reforms such as releasing hundreds of political prisoners.

But remaining political detainees, fighting between government troops and ethnic rebels, and alleged human rights abuses remain major concerns for Western nations which have imposed sanctions on the regime.

Unlike in 2010, the government allowed foreign observers and journalists to witness Sunday's polls. More than six million people were eligible to vote.

-- (c) Copyright AFP 2012-04-01

[Lite Beer]

RT@Markmackinnon: Thousands dancing and waving flags right now at NLD HQ in central Rangoon. A year ago, people were afraid to pause in front of NLD office.

[ratcatcher]

My sincere congratulations to the Lady of Burma. may she enjoy many more years in politics and continue to try to improve the lives and dreams of the Burmese people. This is a good start.

Perhaps one day she will surpass our own Lady ****luck.

[TexasRanger]

Good old Auntie Su, nice one!

[bigbamboo]

A great result for The Lady and an even greater one for the old generals who desperately wanted this to happen anyway.

[hellodolly]

Congratulations to a Great Lady.

Hopefully this will bring more prosperity to the poor of the nation.

It is a great start

[ALFREDO]

MEL1

You are right, but to compare that two women is difficult.

Maybe in 20 years, when Yingluck is in the age of Suu Kyi, you can try to compare them again. Today, its unfortunately a very one-sided comparison!

[Jingthing]

MEL1

You are right, but to compare that two women is difficult.

Maybe in 20 years, when Yingluck is in the age of Suu Kyi, you can try to compare them again. Today, its unfortunately a very one-sided comparison!

Not maybe in 20 years. NEVER.

[GentlemanJim]

Brilliant !!

Now all those people that were looking for an alternative to Thailand, a whole new country is about to be opened up!! I guess the same opportunities that were in Thailand 40 years ago.

[GentlemanJim]

Now all those people that were looking for an alternative to Thailand, a whole new country is about to be opened up!! I guess the same opportunities that were in Thailand 40 years ago.

Hold it there Jimbo..it will take years for any meaningful opening up..

...and don't forget all that xenophobia induced in the last 50 years by the regime....

This being said, I hope for the best re. the long suffering Burmese.

I am just looking on the bright side !

[webfact]

Sense of hope prevails in Myanmar

Supalak Ganjanakhundee

The Nation

Rangoon

RANGOON: -- Myanmar's eligible voters yesterday cast their ballots, many for the first time in decades, with happiness, excitement and in the hope that the poll would steer their country towards democracy - and largely because of the participation of Nobel laureate and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Suu Kyi looked set to make history yesterday, but complaints of ballot-tampering cast fresh doubt on the fairness of the parliamentary vote.

Daw Kyin Mya, 87, accompanied by a daughter, was walking slowly to a polling station in Yangon's Mayangone township under a hot sun around midday to cast her ballot for a candidate from Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD).

"This is my first election," the ageing voter said. "I did not come out to vote in the 2010 general election because Aung San Suu Kyi was not in the contest."

Suu Kyi herself voted in Kaw Hmu township some 60 kilometres south of Yangon.

Student Shwe Zin Win, 18, a first-time voter in Mayangone township, said she also voted for an NLD candidate, while her mother, who was a government official, voted for the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP).

"I'm very happy to have the right to vote and it's very exciting to cast a ballot for the first time," Shwe Zin Win said, adding that as many of seven members of her family would be voting for their preferred choices.

A hotel employee, Za Yar Win, 31, said he and his wife voted for the NLD since they regarded it as the political party of their family. "I hope the NLD will take all vacant seats in the Parliament," he said.

Many other voters felt this was unlikely, saying the NLD might win a majority of the 45 constituencies up for grabs but could not gain a landslide victory.

The current regime called a by-election for yesterday to fill 45 vacant seats in the Parliament after some MPs were picked to sit in cabinet posts and executive positions.

The stake of 45 out of 664 seats in the parliament might not have any significant effect on Myanmar's parliamentary politics, but it matters for the country, which kicked off political reform toward democracy last year.

Opposition leader Suu Kyi and her NLD officially participated in electoral politics for the first time since their landslide victory in 1990 was rejected by authorities.

Many voters who cast ballots in the 2010 general election said this by-election was relatively freer and more open than the previous one.

Only a few voters interviewed by The Nation in front of polling stations declined to say for whom they voted. Most dared to discuss their choices openly.

"In the 2010 general election people voted under pressure as they feared the military, but it is more open this time as many foreigners have come to see us," said Thein Tun. "I think we can say this election is free and fair," he said.

NLD officials complained there were some technical irregularities in Mingalar Taung Nyunt township as the number of voters on the election commission list was fewer than that of the NLD.

Phyu Phyu Thin, an NLD candidate in Mingalar Taung Nyunt township, took a van to inspect many polling stations in the township of her constituency.

The authority allowed candidates and their representatives into the polling stations to inspect the voting. One or two representatives from each political party could sit inside the polling station. They could file complaints to officials at the station if they found any irregularities in the ballot-casting process.

Journalists and observers could not go inside polling stations. Officials asked them to look at the ballot casting from afar, but they could take pictures and talk to voters and candidates freely.

U Thu Wai, chairman of the Democratic Party (Myanmar), a candidate in Mingalar Taung Nyunt, said he walked through many polling stations in his constituency to make sure there would be nothing wrong in the ballot casting. "So far, I have found no problem and I think this election is open and transparent enough for us," he said.

However there were some misunderstandings among voters over the procedure and their rights. A female voter stood sadly at a station after officials in Mayagone township refused to let her cast a ballot on behalf of her sick mother.

The polls were marred somewhat by allegations of ballot-paper irregularities, notably that wax had been put over the check box for the NLD that could be rubbed off later to cancel the vote.

"This is happening around the country. The election commission is responsible for what is occurring," NLD spokesman Nyan Win told AFP.

"I have sent a complaint letter to the union election commission. If it continues like this it can harm the prestige of the election."

-- The Nation 2012-04-02

[Naam]

Brilliant !!

Now all those people that were looking for an alternative to Thailand, a whole new country is about to be opened up!! I guess the same opportunities that were in Thailand 40 years ago.

unfortunately it will take a decade or more till they have reached Thailand's infrastructure level of the 1980s. too long for the resident old timers

[metisdead]

Posts using derogatory nicknames or intentional misspelling of people’s names will be deleted. If you don’t want your post to be deleted, spell people’s names correctly.

An off topic post has been removed.

[MEL1]

It would be nice, once and for all, to see goods exported with little labels on the bottom "Made in Myanmar", when a certain country close to home used to do, but when the goods were still made in Myanmar, prior to local import and then export, at profits.

Myanmar, and Laos for that matter, have a lot of craftsmanship skills to offer, much more than Thailand has. It would be a great exposure for these to be revealed, especially as ASEAN approaches, and these countries are permitted to show such, not only in Asia but for the world to see, and invest in for the benefit of these, so far, hidden countries. Don't get me wrong, I am all for Thailand too, but equality is also a factor in balancing realities.

-mel.

[animatic]

Wondeful news for The Lady. And for the country and it's people.

[webfact]

Myanmar's Suu Kyi hails 'victory of the people'

by Hla Hla Htay

YANGON, April 2, 2012 (AFP) - Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi hailed a "victory of the people" but warned against triumphalism after her apparent win in elections seen as a test of the regime's burgeoning reforms.

Suu Kyi supporters celebrated into the night after her National League for Democracy (NLD) party declared that the Nobel laureate had secured a seat in parliament for the first time in Sunday's by-elections.

The veteran activist's election to political office, if confirmed, would mark the latest dramatic change in the country formerly known as Burma after decades of outright military rule ended last year.

"It's normal that NLD members and supporters are happy at this moment," Suu Kyi, who was locked up by the former junta for most of the past 22 years, said in a statement after the vote.

"But words, behaviour and actions that can harm and sadden other parties and people must be avoided completely. I would like all NLD members to ensure that the victory of the people is a dignified victory," she added.

The NLD said that it had won almost all of the seats it contested, based on its own tally. No official results have yet been announced.

"We won 43 seats out of 44. We are waiting for the results for the last one, in northern Shan state," said party spokesman Kyi Toe.

Even that would not tip the balance of power in a parliament dominated by the military and its political allies.

But as a lawmaker and opposition leader in parliament, Suu Kyi would have an unprecedented voice in the legislative process, and her party is also already looking ahead to the next general election in 2015.

"Obviously they want to win the next election comprehensively and be able to set up a government in their own right," said Trevor Wilson, a Myanmar expert at the Australian National University.

Observers say the quasi-civilian government that took power a year ago needs Suu Kyi to take a place in parliament to bolster the legitimacy of its political system and spur an easing of Western sanctions.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, in Istanbul for a meeting of the "Friends of Syria" group, said Washington was committed to supporting the nascent reforms in Myanmar that have been cautiously welcomed by the West.

"While the results have not yet been announced, the United States congratulates the people who participated, many for their first time in the campaign and election process," Clinton said.

The Myanmar government has surprised even its critics over the past year with a string of reforms such as releasing hundreds of political prisoners, but ethnic conflict and alleged rights abuses remain concerns for the West.

Unlike in 2010 general elections, the government allowed foreign observers and journalists to witness Sunday's polls, which were to replace MPs who gave up their seats to join the government.

Malgorzata Wasilewska, a European Union election observer, hailed "very encouraging" signs at the roughly dozen polling stations her team visited.

"However, that's definitely not enough to assume that it is indicative of how the process was conducted in other parts of the country and certainly not enough to talk about credibility of elections," she said.

In the run-up to the eagerly awaited vote, the NLD decried alleged intimidation of candidates and other irregularities, and Suu Kyi said the poll could not be considered "a genuinely free and fair election".

The 2010 election, won by the military's political proxies, was plagued by complaints of cheating and the exclusion of Suu Kyi, who was released from seven straight years of house arrest shortly afterwards.

The NLD swept to a landslide election victory in 1990, when Suu Kyi was in detention, but the junta never recognised the result.

-- (c) Copyright AFP 2012-04-02

[Roadman]

MEL1

You are right, but to compare that two women is difficult.

Maybe in 20 years, when Yingluck is in the age of Suu Kyi, you can try to compare them again. Today, its unfortunately a very one-sided comparison!

Agree with the Jingythingy. They will never be compariable. One of them has morals and values and the other is a Shinawatra

[Soutpeel]

It would be nice, once and for all, to see goods exported with little labels on the bottom "Made in Myanmar", when a certain country close to home used to do, but when the goods were still made in Myanmar, prior to local import and then export, at profits.

Myanmar, and Laos for that matter, have a lot of craftsmanship skills to offer, much more than Thailand has. It would be a great exposure for these to be revealed, especially as ASEAN approaches, and these countries are permitted to show such, not only in Asia but for the world to see, and invest in for the benefit of these, so far, hidden countries. Don't get me wrong, I am all for Thailand too, but equality is also a factor in balancing realities.

-mel.

The interesting thing is that Burma are already looking at floating their currency and further it appears making is easier to invest in Burma. per a BBC interview a little while ago...talking about new companies set up would get 5 years without paying tax and even allowing 100% foreign ownership...ie they don't need a Bumese partner.

Certainly interesting comparing current business practices in Thailand with what may be proposed for Burma !!

[Pseudolus]

It would be nice, once and for all, to see goods exported with little labels on the bottom "Made in Myanmar", when a certain country close to home used to do, but when the goods were still made in Myanmar, prior to local import and then export, at profits.

Myanmar, and Laos for that matter, have a lot of craftsmanship skills to offer, much more than Thailand has. It would be a great exposure for these to be revealed, especially as ASEAN approaches, and these countries are permitted to show such, not only in Asia but for the world to see, and invest in for the benefit of these, so far, hidden countries. Don't get me wrong, I am all for Thailand too, but equality is also a factor in balancing realities.

-mel.

The interesting thing is that Burma are already looking at floating their currency and further it appears making is easier to invest in Burma. per a BBC interview a little while ago...talking about new companies set up would get 5 years without paying tax and even allowing 100% foreign ownership...ie they don't need a Bumese partner.

Certainly interesting comparing current business practices in Thailand with what may be proposed for Burma !!

For this very reason I have already in place a plan to move out of Thailand and into Myanmar. Myanmar has the potential to overtake Thailand if they practice fair policies. How many expats and companies in Thailand will stay when they can make heaps more down the road and not be constantly up against policies annd laws that even the Myanmar Junta would not dare to implement.

[sparebox2]

Two simultaneous female leaders in ASEAN soon.

Watch this space.

[Soutpeel]

Two simultaneous female leaders in ASEAN soon.

Watch this space.

Which two female leaders are you talking about ?.......surely you are not suggesting the current PM of Thailand is a leader....? I thought she was a clone, who favours Burberry boots, denies all knowlege of everything and occassionally bursts into tears and then phones number 1 brother in Dubai..

Please dont even try to compare the current Thai PM with Aung San Suu Kyi ,not even close

[ginjag]

Difficult to not to compare the two ladies. One has suffered and knows what it's like, pulled on all her reserves and never gave in, and got rewards, she is truly loved. To speak about the Thai P.M. or compare is difficult, she is completely opposite, born with a silver spoon in the mouth -pushed along within the family wealth. Placed or ordered by her brother to care take for him until his over whelming return comes about. The near perfect English speaking Burmese lady and GENUINE warmth she has for her people. It's this warmth and dedication that shows a mile---without having to pay for votes.  Good luck to Burma the people deserve it. Most people here are photocopies of their own government. Greedy.

[Soutpeel]

The near perfect English speaking Burmese lady

"near perfect English" her English is perfect and would suggest she speaks the language better than you or me !!

[DtemJai]