President Thein Sein, in dark suit, flanked by vice presidents Sai Mauk Kham, left, and Tin Aung Myint Oo, right, after returning from an overseas trip. At far right is Gen Min Aung Hlaing, the commander-in-chief of the Burmese armed forces. (Photo: The Irrawaddy)
When asked recently about the discrepancy, Ko Ko Hlaing noted that the army's chief, Gen Min Aung Hlaing, is a member of the NDSC and added that “Our country is no longer an autocratic state as before.” These comments cryptically implied that Thein Sein has no personal power to tell the Burmese military to refrain from anything.
But many foreign visitors who have met Thein Sein have described him as impressive, in his own quiet but commanding way. He has shown that he is a good listener, and in spite of hardline and moderate divisions in the government, insiders say he is still very much in control.
One story goes that when he saw a news report published in both The Irrawaddy and the Bangkok Post suggesting that Vice President Tin Aung Myint Oo was constantly undermining him and perhaps gearing up for a military coup, Thein Sein simply asked his staff to bring him extra copies of the news article. He then pinned a short note to the clippings and sent them over to the vice-president's office. No one knew what was written in the short note, but many in his office assumed that he politely asked the first vice president to read the article.
According to officials in Naypyidaw, Thein Sein has since brought Tin Aung Myint Oo into his camp. But the question is whether the military is fully behind the president and his reform process. Several ministers are also sitting on the fence, waiting to see how the power struggle between the hardline and reform factions plays out. Informed sources said that some members of the NDSC do not support the president.
In any event, Thein Sein remains an enigma. He is a man who has demonstrated some admirable qualities while acting as one of the leaders of a brutally immoral regime. He is also a man who has spent his adult life obeying the military chain-of-command in an authoritarian junta who now purports to head up a civilian government on the path towards democracy. Finally, he is the man who most believe represents the Burmese people’s best hope for internal government reform, while remaining closely connected to those who wish to remain in absolute power.
Under these circumstances, the Burmese people should receive understanding for their continued insistence that it is the actions of Thein Sein’s government, rather than his personal words, that will convince them that he is the real deal when it comes to reforms.
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