Min Aung Hlaing

In the lead-up to 2011, the military began embarking on a series of political reforms to transition Myanmar to a quasi-democracy. The ruling junta, the State Peace and Development Council, engineered its formal departure from power, after holding the 2010 Myanmar general election, which was won by the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), the military's proxy party. On 30 March 2011, outgoing head of state, Senior General Than Shwe, then the incumbent Commander-in-Chief of Myanmar's Armed Forces, appointed Min Aung Hlaing as his successor, ahead of more senior officers.[14][15] Min Aung Hlaing's appointment coincided with USDP's rise to power, during which he oversaw a series of military reforms, and supported efforts by the USDP-led government to strike peace deals with ethnic armed groups.[14]

In November 2011, according to The Irrawaddy News, it was "widely believed" that following Min Aung Hlaing's meetings with Chinese military officials that month and his leadership in creating a bilateral agreement on defense cooperation with the Chinese, he had also held talks with Chinese Vice-President Xi Jinping regarding cooperation from China with respect to the Kachin Conflict.[13]

On 27 March 2012, during a speech in Naypyidaw, Min Aung Hlaing defended the military's continued role in national politics.[13][16] On 3 April 2012, the Government of Myanmar announced that Min Aung Hlaing had been promoted to vice-senior general, the second highest rank in Myanmar's Armed Forces.[13] He was promoted to senior general in March 2013.

In 2014, as Min Aung Hlaing approached the age of 60, which is the mandatory age of retirement for military officers, the Armed Forces' Department of Defence Council issued a directive, enabling Min Aung Hlaing to extend his mandatory retirement age to 65, in 2021.[17]

In August 2015, the USDP fractured, and President Thein Sein purged the faction led by Shwe Mann, a former general and Speaker of the Pyithu Hluttaw.[14] Min Aung Hlaing oversaw a direct military intervention to oust Shwe Mann from power, indicating the military's desire to continue furthering its agenda through USDP.[18] Shwe Mann had advocated for legislation and constitutional amendments that would have decreased the military's influence, against the interests of the military and USDP.[18]

The 2015 Myanmar general election saw the National League for Democracy (NLD), led by Aung San Suu Kyi, win in a landslide. With the transition from an USDP to NLD-led government, Min Aung Hlaing shifted his priorities to recovering state power for the military establishment.[14] His intransigence and refusal to cooperate with the civilian-led government undermined progress toward Myanmar's peace process.[14] As the NLD assumed power, Min Aung Hlaing began intensifying an ongoing military crackdown on the Rohingya, beginning in October 2016.[19][20] At the Union Peace Conference - 21st Century Panglong in August 2020, he sharply warned the NLD against scapegoating the military for its role in the ongoing ethnic conflicts.[21]

Min Aung Hlaing also began to signal his interest in civilian politics.[14] He began assuming a more stateman-like persona, and became increasingly assertive about the military's role.[21][10] In the lead-up to the 2020 Myanmar general election, he worked with the USDP to position himself as the next President.[21] Throughout 2019, Min Aung Hlaing made several public appearances dubbed a "charm offensive," at several religious sites and charity functions,[22] raising speculation about his political ambitions.[23][17] To cultivate his public persona, he began two Facebook pages that commanded a combined following of 4.1 million followers.[24][25] In May 2020, Min Aung Hlaing reshuffled senior military ranks, promoting a new generation of officers loyal to Min Aung Hlaing, including Kyaw Swar Lin, who became the military's youngest lieutenant-general.[26]

In November 2020, Min Aung Hlaing made a series of public comments questioning the legitimacy of the upcoming 2020 election, in potential violation of the Civil Services Personnel Law.[27] On 5 November, the Tatmadaw declared that Min Aung Hlaing's rank is equivalent to Vice President of Myanmar.[28] After casting his ballot in the 2020 election, Min Aung Hlaing vowed to accept the election results.[29] The 2020 election saw NLD win in a larger landslide than in 2015, forestalling Min Aung Hlaing's political ambitions. In response, the military began intensifying allegations of electoral fraud and irregularities, submitting formal complaints to the Union Election Commission. On 27 January 2021, Min Aung Hlaing publicly remarked that he would not rule out a coup d'état and abolition of the Constitution, if allegations of voter fraud during last year’s election were not adequately addressed.[30] These comments sparked concern about another potential coup in the country.[31] The following day, the Union Election Commission issued a statement rejecting claims of electoral fraud, citing the lack of evidence submitted to substantiate these claims.[32] On 29 January, the military issued clarifying statements pledging to protect and abide by the Constitution and applicable laws.[33]

On 1 February, Min Aung Hlaing led the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, one day before democratically-elected members of parliament were scheduled to be sworn in as members of the Assembly of the Union. The following day, he established the State Administrative Council as the country's interim ruling body.[34][35]

The UNHRC reported that Min Aung Hlaing's soldiers have been deliberately targeting civilians in Northern states of Myanmar and have been committing systemic discrimination and human rights violations against minority communities in Rakhine State.[36] In particular, he has been accused of ethnic cleansing against the Rohingya people.[37] These human rights violations could amount to genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes.[38]

As commander-in-chief of the Mynamar military he is accused of having carried out operations against the Rohingya with genocidal intent.[39]

Facebook banned Min Aung Hlaing from its platform along with 19 other top Burmese officials and organisations to prevent further heated ethnic and religious tensions in Myanmar. This action followed a UN investigation's report that certain military leaders in Myanmar be investigated and prosecuted for genocide over a crackdown on Rohingya Muslims.[40][41] Twitter later banned him on 16 May 2019.[42]

On 17 March 2019, Kyaw Zaw Oo, an Arakanese MP, published a bilingual open letter to Min Aung Hlaing about many violations of Tatmadaw in Rakhine State, inflicting on lives and property of the civilians, damaging some buildings of cultural heritage as well.[43][44]

In July 2019, the United States government banned him from travel to the United States.[45] In December 2020, it froze Min Aung Hlaing's American-based assets and criminalized financial transactions between him and anyone in the United States.[45][46]

Min Aung Hlaing has courted enduring controversy for his family's extensive business assets and potential conflicts of interest. He is a major shareholder in the army-owned Myanmar Economic Holdings Limited (MEHL). During the 2010–11 fiscal year, he had owned 5,000 shares and received an annual dividend of $250,000.[47] He sits on MEHL's Patron Group, which runs the conglomerate.[48]

Min Aung Hlaing's son, Aung Pyae Sone, owns a number of companies, including Sky One Construction Company and Aung Myint Mo Min Insurance Company.[49] He also has a majority stake in Mytel, a national telecoms carrier.[49] In 2013, his Aung Pyae Sone won a no-bid government permit well below market rates, for a 30 year lease on land at the Yangon People's Park for a high-end restaurant and art gallery, following his father's promotion to Commander-in-Chief.[50] Aung Pyae Sone also runs A&M Mahar, which offers Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approvals and customs clearance services for drugs and medical devices.[51] Myanmar's customs department is led by Kyaw Htin, a former MEHL director.[51]

His daughter Khin Thiri Thet Mon founded a major film studio, 7th Sense Creation, in 2017.[52] That same year, his daughter-in-law, Myo Yadanar Htaik, founded another entertainment company, Stellar Seven Entertainment.[52] The American Embassy, Yangon came under media scrutiny in December 2020, for collaborating with 7th Sense Creation, because Min Aung Hlaing is technically subject to US economic sanctions.[53]

On 7 October 2019, the Young Men's Buddhist Association (YMBA) awarded him the title of Mingaladhamma Zawtika Dhaza and the permanent patron of YMBA.[60][61] On 9 December 2020, YMBA awarded him the title of Thado Thiri Agga Maha Mingalar Zawtika.[62]