Is Burma looking for a new Army Chief?
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Is Burma looking for a new Army Chief?


By The Irrawaddy JANUARY, 2007 - VOLUME 15 NO.1


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The “dark horse” advance in recent years of Burma’s Gen Thura Shwe Mann has fed rumors that he has been groomed to become the country’s next armed forces commander-in-chief, o­ne of the posts currently held by junta chief Snr-Gen Than Shwe. Such speculation is fueled in part by the junta’s periodic reshuffles, when new faces—or old o­nes—rise or fall according to the whims of the moment. The military government rolls out its new leaders like car manufacturers unveiling the new season’s models. Therefore, it’s worth taking a moment to “kick the tires”, so to speak, to discover if there’s anything to the rumors, or if—as is usually the case—it’s just the same old car with a fresh coat of paint.

Is there any substance to the rumors?

Rumors are generally just that—speculation based o­n a variety of more or less objective observations. But rumors about Shwe Mann have been persistent. He is currently the No. 3 man in the military hierarchy and holds the title of joint chief of staff. At present, Than Shwe and his No. 2, Vice Snr-Gen Maung Aye, appear to be firmly in control of the state. What happens after the National Convention concludes, and what role Than Shwe stakes out after a constitution has been adopted and elections held remains anyone’s guess.

What’s Shwe Mann’s story?

He graduated from the Defense Services Academy’s Intake 11 in 1969. Since then, he has risen steadily through the ranks of the officers’ corps, achieving the level of major in 1988. What involvement he had in the bloody crackdown of pro-democracy student protestors that year remains unknown.

Shwe Mann earned the honorific title “Thura” for bravery during action against the Karen National Liberation Army in 1989. He had served in Karen State as a regiment commander but soon earned the rank of lieutenant-colonel, and then full colonel two years later.

He served in 1991 as a tactical operations commander for Light Infantry Division 66 based in Prome, some 177 miles (285 km) northwest of Rangoon. By 1996, he had achieved the rank of brigadier-general and was appointed to oversee security in Rangoon as commander of the elite LID 11 based in Htauk Kyant, about 20 miles (32 km) west of the former capital.

A year later, Shwe Mann was named commander of Southwest Military Region in Bassein, Irrawaddy Division, as well as a de facto member of the ruling State Peace and Development Council. In 2000, he was promoted to major-general and became a permanent member of the SPDC.



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