Supreme legal document of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar
Constitution of the Republic of the
Union of Myanmar
(2008)
|
---|
Created
| 9 April 2008
|
---|
Ratified
| 29 May 2008
|
---|
Date effective
| 31 January 2011
|
---|
Purpose
| To replace the 1974 Constitution of the Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma
|
---|
The
Constitution of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar
(
Burmese
:
????????????????????????????????? ?????????????????????
) is the supreme law of
Myanmar
. Myanmar's first constitution adopted by constituent assembly was enacted for the
Union of Burma
in 1947.
[1]
After the
1962 Burmese coup d'etat
, a second constitution was enacted in 1974. The country has been ruled by
military juntas
for most of its history.
The
2008 Constitution
, the country's third
constitution
,
[2]
was published in September 2008
[3]
after a referendum, and came into force on 31 January 2011.
[4]
Under this current constitution, the
Tatmadaw
(Myanmar Armed Forces) retain significant control of the government, even before their coup of 2021. 25% of seats in the
Parliament of Myanmar
were reserved for serving military officers. The ministries of
home
,
border affairs
and
defense
were headed by a serving
military officer
.
[5]
[6]
The military also appointed one of the country's two
vice presidents
.
[7]
Hence, the country's civilian leaders have little influence over the security establishment.
[5]
[6]
History
[
edit
]
Before independence, Myanmar had two quasi-constitutions, The government of Burma Act, 1935
[8]
and Constitution of Burma under Japanese occupation, 1943.
[9]
After independence, Myanmar adopted three constitutions in 1947,
[10]
1974
[11]
and 2008.
[12]
The 2008 constitution is the present constitution of Myanmar.
1947 constitution
[
edit
]
The 1947 constitution, officially the
Constitution of the Union of Burma
(
???????????????????????????? ??????????????????????????????
), was drafted and approved by the Constituent Assembly of Burma in 1947,
[13]
and was used from the country's independence in 1948 until the military seizure of power during the
1962 military coup
.
[14]
This constitution was developed in consultation with different ethnic groups including the Chin, Kachin, and Shan people. In return, these groups were to receive full autonomy in internal matters. The constitution also granted the right for ethnic states to secede from the new Union of Burma if so desired after ten years following independence in 1948.
[14]
The national government consisted of three branches:
judicial
,
legislative
and
executive
. The legislative branch was a
bicameral legislature
called the
Union Parliament
, consisting of two chambers, the 125-seat
Chamber of Nationalities
(
??????????????????
Lumyozu Hluttaw
) and the
Chamber of Deputies
(
????????????????
Pyithu Hluttaw
), whose seat numbers were determined by the population size of respective constituencies.
[15]
[16]
The 1947 constitution was largely based on the
1946 Yugoslav Constitution
, as several Burmese officials visited
Yugoslavia
earlier that year.
[17]
Just as Yugoslavia at that time was a
federation
, so was Burma under the 1947 constitution. Despite this, the country was governed like a
unitary state
, and not a
federation
, in practice.
[18]
Other influences of the socialist Yugoslav constitution were the sections establishing a welfare state and codifying a heavily centralised government.
[14]
Wikisource
has original text related to this article:
The 1947 constitution was suspended when the Myanmar military seized power and formed the
Revolutionary Council of the Union of Burma
, led by general
Ne Win
.
[14]
1974 constitution
[
edit
]
The 1974 constitution, officially the
Constitution of the Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma
(
??????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????????????????
), was the second constitution to be written, was approved in a
1973 referendum
, and was adopted on 3 January 1974. It created a
unicameral
legislature called the
People's Assembly
(Pyithu Hluttaw), represented by members of the
Burma Socialist Programme Party
(BSPP) as the only legal party.
[19]
Each term was 4 years.
[16]
Ne Win
became the president at this time.
According to
David I. Steinberg
, this constitution was modelled after the constitutions of the
Eastern Bloc
.
[20]
: 210
Gone was the language of federation found in the 1947 constitution. In its place, the 1974 constitution codified a unitary, centralized state, under the complete control of the military, through the BSPP. "Even the modest autonomy previously granted the minorities was rescinded. The periphery was without effective voice. Although 'elected' representatives were obligated to return to their constituencies to learn the problems of their electorate, the system did not work, as fear fear prevented criticism of the military hierarchy and its policies and programs."
[20]
: 211
Wikisource
has original text related to this article:
1988–2008
[
edit
]
Upon taking power in September 1988, the military, under the guise of the
State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC)
suspended the 1974 constitution.
[21]
[22]
The SLORC called a constitutional convention in 1993, but it was suspended in 1996 when the
National League for Democracy
(NLD) boycotted it, calling it undemocratic.
[22]
The constitutional convention was again called in 2004, but without the
NLD
.
[22]
Myanmar remained without a constitution until 2008.
[22]
2008 constitution
[
edit
]
Wikisource
has original text related to this article:
On 9 April 2008, the military government of
Myanmar
(Burma) released its proposed
constitution
for the country to be put to a vote in public referendum on 10 May 2008, as part of its
roadmap to democracy
. The constitution is hailed by the
military
as heralding a return to democracy, but the opposition sees it as a tool for continuing military control of the country.
The legislative branch is the
Assembly of the Union
(
????????????????????
)
Pyidaungsu Hluttaw
, which is a bicameral legislature consisting of the 440-seat
House of Representatives
and the 224-seat
House of Nationalities
. Military (
Tatmadaw
) member delegates are reserved a maximum of 56 of 224 seats in the National Assembly and 110 seats of 440 in the People's Assembly.
[23]
This is similar to former Indonesian and Thai constitution.
[
citation needed
]
The revisions in state structure, including the creation of self-administering areas were not implemented until August 2010.
[24]
The constitution itself came into force on 31 January 2011.
[4]
At the time of its release, foreign media often incorrectly alleged that the constitution barred
Aung San Suu Kyi
from holding public office because of her marriage to a
British citizen
;
[23]
in fact, she would only be barred from the
office of President
, under the disqualification of those who have a spouse or children who are foreign citizens. There is no similar disqualification for any other public office.
2008 constitutional referendum
[
edit
]
On 10 May 2008
[25]
a referendum was held to outline the political framework of the country. According to Chief Justice
Aung Toe
, chairman of the drafting commission,
In drafting the constitution, the commission adhered strictly to the six objectives, including giving the Tatmadaw (the military) the leading political role in the future state.
[26]
The government did not allow
Cyclone Nargis
to delay the referendum which took place as scheduled except in the
delta
areas affected by the cyclone.
[27]
[28]
The
National League for Democracy
, which is led by Aung San Suu Kyi, was not allowed to participate in the creation of the constitution,
[29]
and urged citizens to reject
[30]
the constitution which it labelled as a "sham." The referendum itself passed the 2008 Constitution,
[31]
but was generally regarded as fraudulent by the opposition party and those outside of Burma.
[32]
The SPDC reported a heavy turnout on both dates, with few voting irregularities. Opposition groups say the turnout was comparatively light, with many reported cases of voting irregularities, such as premarked ballots, voter intimidation, and other techniques to influence the outcome of the referendum.
[33]
2012 by-elections
[
edit
]
In spite of its earlier opposition to the 2008 constitution, the NLD participated in the
2012 by-election
for 46 seats and won a landslide victory, with Aung San Suu Kyi becoming a member of parliament, alongside 42 others from her party.
Amending process
[
edit
]
The ruling party and opposition parties have acknowledged that amendments are needed. The 2008 constitution reserves 25% of seats in parliament for members of the military, with the most powerful posts given to active-duty or retired generals.
Content of Constitution
[
edit
]
The Myanmar Constitution has 15 chapters. Chapters 4, 5, and 6 concern the separation of powers between the legislature, judiciary, and executive. Due to over 50 years of military rule, the Constitution of Myanmar is dominated by the military, with 25% of the seats in both houses of the
Assembly of the Union
(
Pyidaungsu Hluttaw
) reserved for military representatives. Proposed changes to most parts of the constitution must be approved by more than 75% of both houses of the Assembly of the Union. For some others it must do so then go to a referendum. When the referendum is held, the changes must be approved by at least 50% of the registered voters, rather than 50% of those voting.
[34]
A 194-page booklet containing the text in Burmese and English is available to download.
Type of content
[
edit
]
- Basic Principles of the Union
- State Structure
- Head of State
- Legislature
- Executive
- Judiciary
- Defence Services
- Citizen, Fundamental Rights and Duties of the Citizens
- Election
- Political Parties
- Provisions on State of Emergency
- Amendment of the Constitution
- State Flag, State Seal, National Anthem and the Capital
- Transitory Provisions
- General Provisions
References
[
edit
]
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.
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- ^
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Archived
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- ^
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.
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?????????????????????????????????????????????? ???? ???????????????????????? ????????? ?????????????????????????????????? ??-?-???? ?????????? ??????????????????
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a
b
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.
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.
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- ^
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Archived
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. Retrieved
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b
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d
Diller, Janelle M. (1 April 1993).
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.
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33
(4): 393?407.
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:
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.
ISSN
0004-4687
.
JSTOR
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.
- ^
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Archived
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Wayback Machine
(1947), Chapter VI: Parliament
- ^
a
b
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.
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- ^
DASMIP, PA, 1947, f-124, 425154, Zabeleska o razgovoru druga Price sa predstavnikom burmanske vlade Maung Ohn, dana 5 decembra 1947 godine [Minutes of conversation between comrade Prica and the representative of the Burmese Government Maung Ohn, December 5th 1947]. F. S. V. Donnison, Burma (London: Ernest Benn Limited, 1970), p. 141.
- ^
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(PDF)
.
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- ^
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a
b
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(PDF)
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.
- ^
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- ^
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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- ^
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- ^
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External links
[
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]