CNI News
27 June 2025
Democracy must be implemented in a Myanmar style manner by the Myanmar people, said the SAC Chairman Senior General Min Aung Hlaing.
He made the remarks in the opening speech of the Peace Forum 2025, which is being held from June 25-27, 2025.
“In implementing democracy, we need to learn from the experiences of some countries around the world which implemented democracy. There is no uniformity among the countries n the world in implementing democracy. Even Western European countries have different implementation patterns and so do Asian countries. We will not copy other countries in implementing our democratic system. We, the Myanmar people, must lead and implement a democratic system that is consistent with our country's history, lifestyle, cultural characteristics, customs and traditions, in a Myanmar way and style. If everyone works together, putting the interests of the state and the people first, it will be effective and successful," he said.
Myanmar had been implementing a parliamentary democracy since Myanmar gained her independence, and the first democratic government that took office in 2011 under the 2008 Constitution also faced many challenges in implementing the democracy system, he said, adding that the Myanmar people must learn from these experiences and develop a democratic system that is suitable for the country.
The SAC Chairman Senior General Min Aung Hlaing
“Our country is not new to democracy, but had been implementing parliamentary democracy since independence. During that time, we faced many difficulties. During the first democratic government that took office in 2011 under the 2008 Constitution, we were able to implement democratic reforms and reforms in politics, economy, society, international relations, and other sectors, but we also faced many challenges. We need to learn from these lessons and develop a democratic system that suits our country." said Senior General Min Aung Hlaing.
In Myanmar, efforts are being made to develop a democratic system through peace talks between the government, military, parliament, and armed groups. However, there are differences of opinion on which type of union system to build, such as a democratic federal union, a federal democratic union, or a union based on democracy and federalism.
Furthermore, during the Ne Win era, the Myanmar-style socialism was practiced, but a one-party system only emerged and after a popular uprising, the 1974 constitution was abolished and the military seized power.
Then, Senior General Saw Maung and Senior General Than Shwe ruled the country successively and the 2008 constitution was drafted and promulgated. Then, in 2011, the military handed over power to the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), which had won the 2010 general election, and a government led by U Thein Sein emerged.
The SAC Chairman Senior General Min Aung Hlaing
After the Thein Sein government, the National League for Democracy (NLD) won the 2015 general election and formed a government that ruled until 2020.
However, the 2020 general election saw the NLD win again, but the election voter list was disputed, and the military demanded the NLD to examine the dispute, but the NLD attempted to form a government And then the Myanmar Tatmadaw declared a state of emergency and seized power on February 1, 2021. Then, protests broke out against the Myanmar Tatmadaw and the SAC, with protesters demanding the establishment of democracy.
Then, some ethnic armed groups and democracy activists attempted to overthrow the Myanmar Tatmadaw and the SAC through armed resistance.
In order to overcome these political crises and restore democracy, elections would be held in phases in December 2025 and January 2026, and power would be transferred to the winning party, the SAC announced.
