Myanmar parliament dominated by pro-military party convenes after 5 years

Myanmar’s parliament has convened for the first time since the 2021 coup after recent elections saw the pro-military party winning most of the seats as major opposition parties were barred from running.

The opening of ⁠the new parliament on Monday followed phased elections in December and January, which the pro-military Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) dominated amid low voter turnout and no viable opposition.A quarter of the available seats in the upper and lower houses – 166 seats – were reserved for the military, and the USDP won 339 of the rest. Twenty-one other parties won from one to 20 seats each.

During Monday’s session, Khin Yi, the chairman of the military-backed USDP, was elected speaker of the lower house. He is a former general and police chief, widely regarded as a close ally of Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, Myanmar’s military ruler.

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