Myanmar – the coup
On February 1, Myanmar’s military rebelled against a rigged election allegedly won by pro-Western candidate Aung San Suu Kyi, head of Myanmar’s ruling National League for Democracy (NLD) party and state councilor. Aung San Suu Kyi has been detained along with Myanmar President Win Myint and other members of the political leadership.
The military said the detention was in response to election fraud during the Nov. 8 elections and demanded that the new parliament be adjourned. The Union Election Commission rejected the charges last week.
In their declaration of a state of emergency, the military cited the commission’s failure to address complaints about voter rolls, its refusal to agree to postpone new sessions of parliament and protests by groups dissatisfied with the vote.
The declaration was signed by First Vice President U Myint Swe, who is serving as the acting president. According to the statement, state power will be handed over to Commander-in-Chief of Defense Services Min Aung Hlaing (announced by Myawady TV).
Myanmar’s military said Monday that new elections will be held after the end of the one-year state of emergency, at which point it will return the power of the state to the new government. The military said that during the state of emergency, the electoral commission would be reformed and parliamentary elections would be reconsidered.
Relations between the country’s leadership and the army had deteriorated sharply in recent months due to the military’s dissatisfaction with the outcome of the country’s November elections.
Last week, Min Aung Hlaing threatened to revise the constitution if the laws were not enforced.
Myanmar was under military rule before the so-called “democratic” reforms in 2011 – which were, in fact, an attempt by the West to lure Myanmar into its geopolitical orbit.
The US has openly promised to intervene if the situation does not change. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and Australian Foreign Minister Maris Paine expressed concern about the situation in Myanmar and called on the military to immediately release State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and other high-ranking officials.
The Biden administration warned Myanmar’s military leaders on Sunday that it would take action if they mounted an apparent coup against the country’s civilian leaders.
“The United States stands with the people of Burma in their aspirations for democracy, freedom, peace, and development. The military must reverse these actions immediately,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.
The coup has thwarted years of Western efforts to establish “democracy” in Myanmar, where the neighboring power, China, wields powerful influence. One of the reasons the United States is promoting so-called democracy in Myanmar is to take it out of China’s orbit.
The generals made their move hours before parliament was due to sit for the first time since the Nov. 8 election. They were unhappy with the vector of Aung San Suu Kyi’s proposed policies, which are backed by Western forces. She studied at Oxford, worked in New York for a long time, has been in friendly contact with the administration of former President Barack Obama and met personally with Hillary Clinton in Yangon. She is also a Nobel laureate and recipient of the Congressional Medal of the United States.
Myanmar’s path was actively encouraged by the Obama administration. Obama lifted numerous economic sanctions against Myanmar to further encourage democratization.
But despite US efforts, Myanmar’s military elite was able to retain key influence.
Somalia: terrorist attack
In Somalia, Islamist attacks have begun again in the run-up to possible elections. The terrorist group Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for an attack on Hotel Afrik on January 31, which began with a car bomb, followed by hours of gunfire involving security forces. Police provided various lists of the dead, ranging from nine to 17 people, including four attackers who were killed. As many as 30 people were wounded.
Since 2008, al-Shabab has sought to overthrow Somalia’s central government. The African Union peacekeeping force is stationed in Somalia and has been reclaiming control of areas controlled by the extremist group since 2017.
Somalia’s federal government and regional states have long squabbled over power and resources.
The attack came at a crucial time for Somalia, as the country was scheduled to hold parliamentary and presidential elections by Feb. 8.
However, with political differences between regions, instability is likely to worsen again.
Libya: the fight for leadership
The organizers of the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum, previously discredited, are trying to gain control of the internal politics of the North African country. This time, the Forum, headed by the Acting Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General Stephanie Williams, has selected a list of possible candidates for the head of the transitional government (the first negotiations within the Forum went nowhere, because Williams’ pressure provoked great controversy on the margins of the event).
Prominent possible candidates include both outspoken Islamists who are in constant contact with Williams (like the Minister of Interior in theGovernment of National Accord (GNA) , Fathi Bashagha, who proposed to establish the US military base in Libya), and pragmatists who could actually reform the country in a peaceful way (such as Deputy Prime Minister Ahmed Maiteeq). The head of House of Representatives Aguila Saleh and GNA Defense Minister Salah al-Namrush.
Voting for the three Libyan regions (Tripolitania, Cyrenaica and Fezzan) will take place next week. At that time, three of the 24 candidates for key posts in the new Presidential Council will be chosen. According to a UN report published last Saturday, 21 people will be nominated for the prime minister’s position.
The composition of the transitional government is extremely important because it would be the foundation for future elections on Dec. 24, 2021, after a bloody decade and fragmentation. While Fathi Bashagha and his men only bring controversy to relations with Khalifa Haftar’s forces, Ahmed Maiteeq has shown himself to be a good diplomat and pragmatist, thanks to whom an oil deal was struck inside Libya, the Libyan Central Bank board of directors was restored, the exchange rate was unified and the first comprehensive revision of the Libyan Investment Authority was launched.
Davos Forum
The World Economic Forum kicked off on Monday January 25, for the first time taking place online, as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
Initiatives to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, accelerate racial justice, and reduce carbon emissions were on the agenda.
Much emphasis has been placed on digital technology, the online economy, and artificial intelligence. The new EDISON alliance will bring governments and industries together to accelerate digital adoption and connect critical sectors of the economy.
Participants called artificial intelligence the biggest economic opportunity of the next decade, more valuable than today’s insurance, oil and gas, commercial real estate and automotive industries.
Another important topic was digital currencies – it is noteworthy that decentralized cryptocurrencies were criticized (the reason why is simple – they cannot be controlled by central banks, which do not act in the interests of the sovereignty of countries).
A lot was said about ecology and plastic recycling.
Social themes were also raised – racial injustice, mental health of citizens, integration of the disabled, etc.
Political themes were also touched upon. In particular, Chinese President Xi Jinping warned global leaders at an all-virtual World Economic Forum (WEF) at Davos on Monday against starting a “new Cold War”.
Uganda bans Facebook
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has blocked Facebook from operating in his country, just days after the company began removing and blocking accounts related to political agendas at its own discretion.
In a televised address late Tuesday night, Mr. Museveni accused Facebook of arrogance and said he had instructed his government to shut down the platform along with other social networks, though Facebook was the only one he named.
“That social channel you are talking about, if it is going to operate in Uganda, it should be used equitably by everybody who has to use it,” Mr. Museveni said. “We cannot tolerate this arrogance of anybody coming to decide for us who is good and who is bad,” he added.
Uganda is not the first country to be outraged by the actions of private social media companies which are starting to openly interfere in electoral processes and promoting their own political agenda. Turkey has previously taken tough action, introducing legislation and official fines for violating local rules.