Yesterday, Burmese citizens took to the streets to celebrate, as results of Myanmar's first free-and-fair elections in a quarter-century poured in from around the country.
According to Tuoi Tre, Myanmar's ruling party conceded defeat after election results, announced constituency by constituency, showed the opposing National League for Democracy (NLD) winning a majority of the country's parliamentary seats.
“We lost,” acting chairman of the Union Solidarity and Development Party Htay Oo told Reuters.
Headed up by Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, the NLD alleges it's on track to win 70% of Myanmar's contested parliamentary seats, well beyond the two-thirds required to form a majority government, however this information has yet to be confirmed by an independent party.
While many Burmese celebrated the news, international observers cautioned that there is still uncertainty, as putting these election results into practice may be a challenge for the country. According to Myanmar's constitution, which was written by the military junta, army officials still reserve the right to take over under certain circumstances.
Still, there's optimism for the time being, as military officials have pledged to respect the recent voting results. Though Suu Kyi herself is ineligible under the current constitution to take office as president, the NLD leader vowed to act as the power behind the new leader.
[Photo via Guardian]
