On February 1, the Myanmar military launched a coup d’etat, arresting leading politicians including State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi and abrogating her party’s massive victory at the November election. The unexpected move has thrown the country’s politics into turmoil: Hundreds of thousands have taken to the streets, as the military junta has upended the country’s process of halting and partial democratization. The coup also revealed the deeper fissures of racial and religious identity that have run through Myanmar’s modern history.
On March 2, The Diplomat hosted a discussion on the causes and consequences of the coup in Myanmar, the youth-led protest movement that has arisen in its wake, and where things might head in the weeks and months to come. Moderated by Sebastian Strangio, The Diplomat’s Southeast Asia Editor, with panelists Tin Tin Nyo, an adviser to and former general secretary of the Women’s League of Burma; Gerard McCarthy, Postdoctoral Fellow at the Asia Research Institute at the National University of Singapore; and Yun Sun, Senior Fellow and Co-Director of the East Asia Program and Director of the China Program at the Stimson Center.