Myanmar’s Suu Kyi says ruling party purge undemocratic

“Most of the USDP lawmakers in the lower house are going to support Shwe Mann”, said Aung Lynn Hlaing, a USDP member of parliament, on his way into parliament.

However, U Shwe Mann disagreed with the proposal saying that those MPs, who are busy with their undertakings, can take leave and the session will go on speedily to complete discussions on some remaining bills and then the session can be stopped.

Shwe Mann had been widely tipped as a potential compromise presidential candidate for Suu Kyi, who is excluded from the role by the junta-drafted constitution.

On her way into parliament on Tuesday Aung San Suu Kyi declined to comment on Shwe Mann or what they discussed.

As troops surrounded the party’s headquarters in Nay Pyi Tawon on Wednesday night, it quickly became apparent that an internal military-backed putsch was taking place. “People are more anxious about the elections and so are we”.

While change at the top of a political party is nothing unusual in itself, Shwe Mann’s fate had nothing whatsoever to do with normal political practice.

As chairman of the USDP, Shwe Mann sought to build ties with Suu Kyi, which sparked suspicion among some members of the ruling party and contributed to his sacking.

Cherry FM, a radio station linked to Shwe Mann’s daughter-in-law, was suspended on Saturday until after the election after it was unable to convince the ministry it was able to be impartial or that it would not issue announcements on what was happening to Shwe Mann, Ye Htut told reporters on Tuesday.

Thein Sein’s move suggests Myanmar is once again trapped in the cycle of authoritarian military rule that brought misery and violence to its population for decades.

“I am not destroying party unity and stability”, he said.

Tension between the two rivals rose after the USDP last week omitted from its list the majority of a group of around 150 officers who retired from military service to run as USDP candidates.

Though President Thein Sein is also regarded as a champion of democratic change, the manner in which he consolidated power harks back to the dark days of Myanmar’s military regime and does not augur well for the country’s future civilian rule.

They were Soe Thein, a powerful minister of the president’s office, and Aung Min, who was picked by Thein Sein to lead the government’s efforts to forge a peace agreement with the country’s armed ethnic groups.

After months of deliberation and conflicting public statements, it’s finally official: Myanmar’s principal opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), will contest elections set for November. 8.

“So my best advice for him is resign from the speaker’s position if you want to prevent further perils for you and your family”.