Myanmar's coup leader who set off a brutal civil war becomes president

[0:00] Thanks for being with us here on BBC News. [0:03] After five years of military rule, Myanmar gets a new president today. [0:07] General Manau Nklaing, the man who led the 2021 coup against the elected government [0:12] led by Aung San Suu Kyi, has been elected to lead the new notionally civilian administration. [0:18] Let's go live now to our Southeast Asia correspondent Jonathan Head, [0:22] who's just been to Myanmar to watch the general's last military parade. [0:27] Jonathan, just remind us of the background. [0:28] Well, when General Manau Nklaing launched his shock coup five years ago, [0:36] he did promise at the time to a very quick return to some kind of democratic rule. [0:41] Remember, he ousted a very popular leader in Aung San Suu Kyi and arrested her, [0:46] and she just won a landslide election. [0:49] So he's always known that his coup lacked legitimacy. [0:52] But because of the wave of public anger that he stirred up with his coup [0:56] and the civil war that broke out, [0:58] meaning his military has lost control of quite large areas of the country, [1:01] he's had to postpone that plan to move to some kind of democratic rule many, many times. [1:07] It's taken him this long. [1:09] This was preceded by an election which was really weighted heavily in favour of the military's own party. [1:16] So the parliament's stacked with his own supporters and loyalists, [1:20] and he's now been able to carry out a transition which many critics around the world [1:24] are going to essentially say is a military regime in civilian clothing. [1:29] Dressed in their finest, [1:34] the newly elected members of Myanmar's parliament met in the capital this week [1:38] to do something they've been unable to do since the coup, [1:42] elect the country's leader. [1:44] But as nearly everyone here is a military loyalist, [1:47] it was inevitable who they'd choose. [1:50] So confident was he of getting the top job, [1:53] the coup leader, Min Aung Hlaing, relinquished command of the armed forces [1:56] even before the vote was finalised, [1:59] handing over to a trusted subordinate. [2:01] When Min Aung Hlaing and his men made their fateful move, [2:05] they were here five years ago. [2:07] They didn't just turn back the clock, [2:09] undoing a decade of hopeful democratic progress. [2:13] They also unleashed a ruinous civil war, [2:16] destroying an already struggling economy. [2:19] And yet the man whose ambition played a big part in that coup [2:23] appears to have no regrets. [2:28] Every year, the military stages this spectacular parade in Naypyidaw, [2:32] reminding the people of Myanmar of its pervasive influence. [2:36] And showing off the weapons, mostly Chinese and Russian, [2:40] used to wage war on its opponents. [2:43] Presiding for the last time, [2:45] Min Aung Hlaing said the army had a constitutional right [2:48] to be involved in national politics, [2:50] describing those who'd taken up arms against his coup as terrorists. [2:54] The protests, seen in the months after the coup, [3:00] are a rarity these days. [3:02] Military punishments are just too severe. [3:06] Jor Win, not his real name, [3:08] says he was beaten with an iron bar, [3:11] slashed with a knife and sexually assaulted for days [3:14] after being arrested for joining a flash mob three years ago. [3:18] Following his release from jail, he says he's had enough. [3:23] If I stay in this country, [3:25] I will always face all kinds of oppression. [3:29] There is forced conscription that really worries me. [3:32] We are under constant surveillance. [3:34] I love my family. [3:36] I want to stay with them. [3:38] Going overseas is now the best option for me. [3:42] The economic situation is dire. [3:46] The UN says one-third of the population needs [3:49] life-saving humanitarian assistance. [3:52] Fuel shortages caused by the Iran war have compounded this crisis. [3:56] Few believe a military regime donning civilian clothes is the answer. [4:02] They won't care about us, said this motorbike taxi driver. [4:05] We'll still have to rely on ourselves. [4:08] His earnings, he said, no longer covered even his food and rent. [4:13] Just surviving. [4:14] For most Burmese, that's the best they can hope for [4:18] while they wait to see whether the generals who've run their country [4:21] for so much of its history will ever loosen their grip. [4:25] So the question now is, now he's got the job, [4:30] what is Min Aung Hlaing going to do with it? [4:32] Now he's got this thing he's always wanted, being president. [4:35] Now, this priority should be to end this disastrous civil war. [4:39] You've got millions displaced, thousands killed by it. [4:42] The problem is he's appointed a very hard-line man [4:45] to replace him as military commander. [4:47] It's likely that the airstrikes, the drone strikes, [4:50] the destruction of villages are just going to continue [4:53] as the military tries to regain control of the country [4:56] with huge consequences for the civilian population. [4:59] One other thing he might consider is releasing Aung San Suu Kyi. [5:02] She's so well-known, she's been out of sight for years, locked up. [5:05] That might win him some international favour. [5:08] But no-one's under any illusions that even if she is released, [5:11] that we're going to see the kind of transition [5:14] to a real democratic government that we saw 15 years ago in Myanmar. [5:18] Jonathan, thank you. [5:19] That's our Southeast Asia correspondent, Jonathan Head, [5:22] with the latest on that change at the top there.