Episode Details

On the 1st of February, the Burmese military launched a coup d'état against the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi and the National League for Democracy which had been returned to power in November in a landslide victory. Alleging electoral fraud, the Tatmadaw's leader Min Aung Hlaing promised that military rule would last for one year and then be followed by new elections. The coup has perplexed outside observers since Aung San Suu Kyi had done little during her time in office to threaten the power of the Tatmadaw and had defended the military's atrocities against the Muslim Rohingya people in Rakhine State. To make sense of the coup I spoke with journalist Carlos Sardiña Galache. Become a £5 PTO supporter to get access to this episode: https://www.patreon.com/poltheoryother