Myanmar's Democratic Future

Large scale protests have been taking place in Myanmar since a military coup on February 1st deposed the democratically-elected leader, Aung San Suu Kyi. This week, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar reported that the military were being deployed to the city of Yangon, raising fears of bloodshed. Protesters are calling for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners, but activist groups have raised concerns that even that may not be enough to restore democracy in Myanmar.

On this episode of World Review from the New Statesman, Emily Tamkin in Washington DC and Ido Vock in Berlin are joined by Wai Hnin Pwint Thon, an activist for Burma Campaign UK whose father was one of those arrested in the days following the military coup. They discuss why the military have taken power, what this means for Myanmar, and whether there is a road to true democracy for the country.

Further reading:

Francis Wade has also been following the situation in Myanmar, and has written this piece exploring how democracy might be defined after the military coup.

Emily has been reporting on the Texas storms that have caused power outages leaving millions in freezing conditions without heating or hot water. She writes that the storms offer a warning to ill-prepared governments.

Ido discusses how new variants of Covid 19 could continue to limit international travel for years beyond the immediate crisis.

We'd love to hear from you! Send us your You Ask Us questions at youaskus.co.uk. Find us on Twitter: @idvck and @emilyctamkin.

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