Military coup in Myanmar – Army arrests de facto Prime Minister Aung San Suu Kyi – News

• In Myanmar, the army detained de facto Prime Minister Aung San Su Kyi and other high-ranking members of the ruling party.
• This was stated by a spokesman for the party of the ruling National League for Democracy, according to various news agencies.
• The army has declared a state of emergency and said the arrests were in response to “electoral fraud” in Myanmar. The head of the army took power for a year.

There had been rumors of a possible upcoming military coup for days. On Monday night, the army leadership finally arrested Suu Kyi, as well as President Win Myint and other high-ranking politicians from smaller parties. It was not initially clear if they were arrested or placed under house arrest.

Tensions after Suu Kyi’s electoral victory

Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi won a second term in the last parliamentary elections in November in the Southeast Asian country of 50 million people. According to official information, his party obtained an absolute majority and participation exceeded 70 percent. However, the military refused to acknowledge the result.

Even after the elections, Suu Kyi continued to depend on cooperation with the army. A quarter of the seats in the parliamentary chambers were reserved for the armed forces. This is what the 2008 constitution says, which the junta wrote so as not to lose power even after the introduction of democratic reforms.