Myanmar’s military junta has sought to justify the 1 February 2021 coup d’état with dubious allegations of electoral fraud surrounding the 8 November 2020 general elections. The State Administration Council perpetuates this narrative of electoral fraud and claims to be preparing fresh elections, including by making changes to election and political party laws, implementing a new electoral system, and updating the voter list.
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More than one year after the Myanmar military staged an attempted coup d'état, democracy defenders both inside and outside of Myanmar remain committed to restoring legitimately elected leaders and returning the country to the path to federalism.
The participants of the third annual Women Constitution-Makers’ Dialogue explored comparative constitutional design approaches to legal pluralism and reconciling tensions between customary/religious systems and guarantees of gender equality and non-discrimination.
On 18 June 2021, the UN General Assembly adopted a Resolution which calls upon the Myanmar armed forces “to respect the will of the people as freely expressed by the results of the general election of 8 November 2020, to end the state of emergency, to respect all human rights of all the people of Myanmar and to allow the sustained democratic transition of Myanmar, including the opening of the democratically elected pa
“Ensuring accountability for past actions, developing mechanisms for transitional justice, enshrining the principles of equality and protection of rights of all ethnic, religious and gender minorities, including Rohingya and other marginalized groups in Myanmar’s future federal constitution and combating all forms of injustice are vital for democracy and constitutional reform in a country and failing to uphold these principles could threaten the country's entire populations.” Wai
International IDEA condemns in the strongest possible terms the extra-legal executions of four democracy defenders in Myanmar, which mark yet another shocking escalation of the violence perpetrated by the military junta. International IDEA associates itself with the wide condemnation of these executions by the international community and the Myanmar national organizations, including the National Unity Government (NUG).
Every major political process, whether peace negotiations, elections, parliamentary terms, constitutional reform or other forms of decision-making, can contribute to challenging gender inequality in public life. This brief explores how to be an effective constitutional advocate for gender equality and women’s rights in Myanmar.
This brief explores how constitutional advocates for women’s equality in Myanmar can advance women’s representation and meaningful participation in public decision-making and institutions. It looks at how different countries have aimed to do this through their constitutions, and what lessons can be learned for your own advocacy strategies.
This brief explores how gender-based violence in Myanmar, particularly violence against women and girls, is addressed in the absence of a clear constitutional provision and legal protection.
This brief explores inclusion strategies for constitutional and democratic reform in the post-coup context of Myanmar. It highlights the challenges to gender equality and inclusion in Myanmar, including the role and demands of the pro-democracy actors in Myanmar’s post-coup political landscape. It analyses how inclusive Myanmar’s legitimate interim government institutions are and what the revised Federal Democracy Charter states about gender and inclusion.
In the current interim period in Myanmar, with an illegitimate military regime in power and efforts by the interim governance institutions under way to build and enable a transition to a genuine democracy, the formation of an interim electoral management body—like a government and a legislature—is urgent and necessary as a key institution to support and prepare for the restoration of democracy.
Under its MyConstitution programme, International IDEA continues to support the legitimate interim government institutions of Myanmar in their pursuit of restoring democracy and constitutional governance since the 2021 coup, together with an increasing number of young civil servants who are emerging as change-makers in Myanmar’s interim National Unity Government (NUG), its interim parliament, the Committee Representing the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH) and the inclusive platform of the pro-democr
On 1 February 2021, the Myanmar military staged a coup and unconstitutionally declared a one-year state of emergency transferring all state powers to the Commander-in-Chief. Against the backdrop of Myanmar’s political crisis and a steady transformation commonly known as the ‘Spring Revolution’, the broadest front of resistance, known as the National Unity Consultative Council (NUCC), endorsed and published a new Federal Democracy Charter in April.
A NEW CONSTITUTION FOR MYANMAR: Towards Consensus on an Inclusive Federal Democracy provides a study of the constitutional history and trajectory of Myanmar, together with an analysis of the positions of certain key stakeholders in Myanmar with regard to constitutional issues.
Since the coup conducted by the Myanmar military on 1 February 2021, the military regime has attempted to portray itself as the country’s legitimate government by arguing that it is adhering to the 2008 Constitution.
The promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women must be at the heart of our effort to strengthen democracy worldwide. Through behaviorally informed interventions, we can help small changes in the way legislatures oversee the use of public funds make a big difference in gender equality in the long run.
Women make up over half of Myanmar’s population, yet significant obstacles remain for women to be able to participate in political processes and to achieve equal representation in Myanmar’s state institutions. Before the military coup on 1 February 2021, Myanmar’s 2020 general elections saw an increased number of women elected as members in legislatures (16 per cent) in comparison to the 2015 elections (13 per cent).
On 1 February last year, the Myanmar military abruptly took control of the central state institutions and arrested the elected President, many senior officials and political leaders.
The background to this brief is the context of the military coup in Myanmar in February 2021, and the declaration of a state of emergency by the military, which has effectively set aside the 2008 Constitution and the elections held under it. The coup has been rejected by the international community as illegitimate and has generated a strong civil disobedience and protest movement, and those elected in November 2020 have formed interim institutions aiming to move towards a democratic order.
Let’s talk about constitutions! is designed to present difficult constitutional concepts to non-specialist and young audiences in an entertaining and informative way. It has been developed to promote young people’s understanding of constitutional issues and thereby empower and inspire youth to play a full and meaningful part in their own constitution-building process.