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Burma
Main Page
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Burma
Politics
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Country
name:
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conventional
long form: Union
of Burma
conventional
short form: Burma
local long
form: Pyidaungzu
Myanma Naingngandaw (translated by the US
Government as Union of Myanma and by the Burmese
as Union of Myanmar)
local short
form: Myanma
Naingngandaw
former: Socialist
Republic of the Union of Burma
note:
since
1989 the military authorities in Burma have
promoted the name Myanmar as a conventional name
for their state; the US Government did not adopt
the name, which is a derivative of the Burmese
short-form name Myanma Naingngandaw
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Government
type:
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military regime
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Capital:
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name: Rangoon
(Yangon)
geographic
coordinates: 16
48 N, 96 09 E
time
difference: UTC+6.5
(11.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
note:
Nay
Pyi Taw is administrative capital
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Administrative
divisions:
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7 divisions (taing-myar,
singular - taing) and 7 states* (pyi ne-myar,
singular - pyi ne)
divisions: Ayeyarwady,
Bago, Magway, Mandalay, Sagaing, Tanintharyi,
Yangon
states: Chin,
Kachin, Kayah, Kayin, Mon, Rakhine (Arakan), Shan
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Independence:
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4 January 1948
(from the UK)
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National
holiday:
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Independence
Day, 4 January (1948); Union Day, 12 February
(1947)
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Constitution:
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3 January 1974;
suspended since 18 September 1988; a constitution
officially received 92.48% support in a flawed May
2008 referendum that most observers judged fell
far short of international standards of free and
fair elections; note - a new constitution is to
take effect when a parliament is convened possibly
in late January 2011
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Legal
system:
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based on
English common law; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction
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Suffrage:
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18 years of
age; universal
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Executive
branch:
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chief of state:
Chairman
of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC)
Sr. Gen. THAN SHWE (since 23 April 1992)
head of
government: Prime
Minister Lt. Gen THEIN SEIN (since 24 October
2007)
cabinet: Cabinet
is overseen by the military regime that assumed
power 18 September 1988 under the name State Law
and Order Restoration Council (SLORC); changed in
1997 to SPDC
(For
more information visit the World Leaders website  )
elections: none
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Legislative
branch:
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bicameral,
consists of the House of Nationalities [Amyotha
Hluttaw] (224 seats, 168 directly elected and 56
appointed by the military; members serve five-year
terms) and the House of Representatives [Pythu
Hluttaw] (440 seats, 330 directly elected and 110
appointed by the military; members serve five-year
terms)
elections: last
held on 7 November 2010 (next to be held in
December 2015)
election
results: House
of Nationalities - percent of vote by party - USDP
74.8%, others (NUP, SNDP, RNDP, NDF, AMRDP) 25.2%;
seats by party - USDP 129, others 39; House of
Representatives - percent of vote by party - USDP
79.6%, others (NUP, SNDP, RNDP, NDF, AMRDP) 20.4%;
seats by party - USDP 259, others 66
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Judicial
branch:
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remnants of the
British-era legal system are in place, but there
is no guarantee of a fair public trial; the
judiciary is not independent of the executive
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Political
parties and leaders:
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All Mon Region
Democracy Party or AMRDP; National Democratic
Force or NDF [KHIN MAUNG SWE]; National League for
Democracy or NLD [AUNG SHWE, AUNG SAN SUU KYI];
note - the party is defunct because it did not
register for the 2010 election; National Unity
Party or NUP [TUN YE]; Rakhine Nationalities
Development Party or RNDP; Shan Nationalities
League for Democracy or SNLD [HKUN HTUN OO]; Union
Solidarity and Development Party or USDP [THEIN
SEIN]; numerous smaller parties
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Political
pressure groups and leaders:
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Thai border: Ethnic
Nationalities Council or ENC; Federation of Trade
Unions-Burma or FTUB (exile trade union and labor
advocates); National Coalition Government of the
Union of Burma or NCGUB (self-proclaimed
government in exile) ["Prime Minister"
Dr. SEIN WIN] consists of individuals, some
legitimately elected to the People's Assembly in
1990 (the group fled to a border area and joined
insurgents in December 1990 to form a parallel
government in exile); National Council-Union of
Burma or NCUB (exile coalition of opposition
groups)
Inside Burma: Kachin
Independence Organization or KIO; Karen National
Union or KNU; Karenni National People's Party or
KNPP; Union Solidarity and Development Association
or USDA (pro-regime, a social and political
mass-member organization) [HTAY OO, general
secretary] became the Union Solidarity and
Development Party in 2010; United Wa State Army or
UWSA; 88 Generation Students (pro-democracy
movement); several other Shan factions
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International
organization participation:
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ADB, ARF, ASEAN,
BIMSTEC, CP, EAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO,
ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OPCW
(signatory), SAARC (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO,
UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
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Diplomatic
representation in the US:
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chief of
mission: Ambassador
(vacant); Charge d'Affaires HAN THU - note: Burma
does not have an ambassador to the United States
chancery: 2300
S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1]
(202) 332-3344
FAX: [1]
(202) 332-4351
consulate(s)
general: none;
Burma has a Mission to the UN in New York
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Diplomatic
representation from the US:
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chief of
mission: Charge
d'Affaires Larry M. DINGER - note: The United
States does not have an ambassador to Burma
embassy: 110
University Avenue, Kamayut Township, Rangoon
mailing
address: Box
B, APO AP 96546
telephone: [95]
(1) 536-509, 535-756, 538-038
FAX: [95]
(1) 650-306
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Flag
description:
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design consists
of three equal horizontal stripes of yellow (top),
green, and red; centered on the green band is a
large white five-pointed star that partially
overlaps onto the adjacent colored stripes; the
design revives the triband colors used by Burma
from 1943-45, during the Japanese occupation
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National
anthem:
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name: "Kaba
Ma Kyei" (Till the End of the World, Myanmar)
lyrics/music: SAYA
TIN
note:
adopted
1948; Burma is among a handful of non-European
nations that have anthems rooted in indigenous
traditions; the beginning portion of the anthem is
a traditional Burmese anthem before transitioning
into a Western-style orchestrated work
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