The sudden removal of one of Burma’s most powerful men sent shockwaves through the diplomatic community in the old capital of Yangon, where foreign embassies are still located. It seemed more like a midnight coup than an ordinary leadership reshuffle—security forces in the new capital, Naypyidaw, entered the headquarters of the de facto ruling party, the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), late Aug. 12. The following day, it was announced that Shwe Mann, the speaker of the Lower House of Burma’s bicameral parliament, a former general and anticipated by some foreign observers to be the country’s next president, had been ousted.
Despite the drama, his removal reconfirmed the widely held belief that the country’s military is not about to relinquish real power. The power shift in Naypyidaw is also unlikely to change the big powers’ attitudes toward the military in Burma.
