Burmese general election, 1956

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Burmese general election, 1956

Flag of Burma (1948-1974).svg

←  1951–52 27 April 1956 1960  →
202 (of the 250) seats in the Chamber of Deputies
126 seats needed for a majority
Turnout 47.8%

 First partySecond party
  U Nu portrait.jpg No image.svg
Leader U Nu
Party AFPFL National United Front
Seats won14848
Seat changeDecrease2.svg51New
Popular vote1,844,6141,170,073
Percentage47.730.4
Prime Minister before election

U Nu
AFPFL

Prime Minister-elect

Ba Swe
AFPFL

Myanmar
State seal of Myanmar.svg
This article is part of a series on the
politics and government of
Myanmar

General elections were held in Burma to vote for 202 out of 250 seats to the Burmese Chamber of Deputies; the remaining 48 members (all from the Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League, AFPFL)) were elected unopposed as no opposition candidates stood against them. [1]

Chamber of Deputies (Burma) Lower house of the bicameral Union Parliament of Burma, 1948-1962

The Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the bicameral Union Parliament of Burma (Myanmar) from 1948 to 1962. Under the 1947 Constitution, bills initiated and passed by the lower house, the Chamber of Deputies, were to be sent to the Chamber of Nationalities for review and revision.

Anti-Fascist Peoples Freedom League political party

The Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League, or hpa hsa pa la (ဖဆပလ) by its Burmese acronym, was the main political alliance in Burma from 1945 until 1958. It was founded by the Communist Party of Burma (CPB) led by Thakin Soe, the Burma National Army (BNA) led by Aung San, and the People's Revolutionary Party (PRP) at a meeting held between 1–3 March 1945 as a reorganised version of the Anti-Fascist Organisation (AFO), formed to resist the Japanese occupation. The new organisation aimed to resist the Japanese occupation and achieve independence.

Contents

The AFPFL, a former wartime resistance organisation, won the elections with a reduced majority. [2] After the election, U Nu, leader of the AFPFL, temporarily retired to reform the party and its policies. [3]

U Nu Burmese nationalist and political figure

Nu, known honorifically as U Nu or Thakin Nu, was a leading Burmese statesman, politician, nationalist, and political figure of the 20th century. He was the first Prime Minister of Burma under the provisions of the 1947 Constitution of the Union of Burma, from 4 January 1948 to 12 June 1956, again from 28 February 1957 to 28 October 1958, and finally from 4 April 1960 to 2 March 1962.

The second part of the election to elect members to the Chamber of Nationalities took place on 22 May after the election commission stated that "rebel intimidation and the lack of security prevented the people from exercising freedom of choice". [1] Voter turnout was 47.8%. [4]

The Chamber of Nationalities was the upper house of the bicameral Union Parliament of Burma (Myanmar) from 1948 to 1962. Under the 1947 Constitution, bills initiated and passed by the lower house, the Chamber of Deputies, were to be sent to the Chamber of Nationalities for review and revision. The Chamber of Nationalities was primarily formed to give minorities within Burma some political power in the national government.

The Union Election Commission is the national level electoral commission of Myanmar (Burma), responsible for organising and overseeing elections in Burma, as well as vetting parliamentary candidates and political parties.

Campaign

The AFPFL, National United Front (NUF) and smaller parties participated in the election. The NUF was successful in gaining media attention and organising trade union and peasant organisations. [5] However, the AFPFL was concerned at alleged funding by foreign embassies of the NUF. [1] A number of smaller parties represented different ethnic groups and were more local than national. [1] Meanwhile, U Nu of the AFPFL advocated his long held policy of neutrality. [6]

National United Front political alliance in Burma (1955-1962)

The National United Front was a political alliance in Burma.

Conduct

After identifying themselves and voting, voters would dip their forefinger in green indelible ink. Opposition parties complained of minor irregularities regarding election lists. [1] Due to the security situation, the army was told to ensure free and fair elections but not to intimidate voters. [1] Students in the capital Rangoon had threatened to cause disorder after one of their leaders was killed by police, however this did not materialise. [7]

Results

PartyVotes%Seats+/–
Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League 1,844,61447.7148–51
National United Front 1,170,07330.448New
United Hill People's Congress 853,55521.914–
Arakanese National Unity Organisation 6New
All-Shan State Organisation 4New
People's Educational and Cultural Development Organisation 4New
Kachin National Congress 2–5
Shan State Peasants' Organisation 2New
Burma Nationalist Party 1New
United National Pa-O Organisation 1–2
Burma Democratic Party 0–
Independents13–2
Vacant––7–
Total3,868,2421002500
Registered voters/turnout8,570,30847.8––
Source: Politics, Parties and National Elections in Burma, Nohlen et al.

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General elections were held in Burma on 9 April 1947 to form the basis of a constituent assembly that would design a constitution once independence from the United Kingdom had been achieved. They were the first elections in Burma since its separation from India under the British Raj. Voter turnout was 49.8%. However, Aung San was assassinated three months later, resulting in U Nu becoming the first Prime Minister of Burma.

Kachin National Congress

The Kachin National Congress was a political party in Burma.

Arakanese National Unity Organisation

The Arakanese National Unity Organisation (ANUO) was a political party in Burma.

Communist insurgency in Myanmar armed conflict that began in 1948 and ended in 1988

The Communist insurgency in Myanmar was led primarily by the Communist Party of Burma (CPB), and the Communist Party (Burma). The conflict ended in 1988, when the armed wing of the CPB disbanded following the Fall of Communism and the ousting of the Burmese socialist dictatorship.

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The Patriotic Alliance was a political alliance in Burma.

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The People's Democratic Front (PDF) was a political alliance in Burma.

Peoples Educational and Cultural Development Organisation

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Peoples Peace Front

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The United Hill People's Congress was a political party in Burma.

Union Party (Burma) political party in Burma

The Union Party was the ruling political party in Burma in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Formed by a split in the Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League, it was initially known as the Clean AFPFL.

Stable AFPFL

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Silverstein, Josef (1956). "Politics, Parties and National Elections in Burma". Far Eastern Survey. Institute of Pacific Relations. 25 (12): 177–184. doi:10.1525/as.1956.25.12.01p1086b. JSTOR   3024383.
  2. ↑ Bigelow, Lee S (1960). "The 1960 Elections in Burma". Far Eastern Survey. Institute of Pacific Relations. 29 (5): 70–74. doi:10.1525/as.1960.29.5.01p13582. JSTOR   3024046.
  3. ↑ Tarling, Nicholas (2000). The Cambridge History of Southeast Asia: From World War II to the Present, Volume 2, Part 2. Cambridge University Press. p. 280. ISBN   978-0-521-66372-4.
  4. ↑ Dieter Nohlen, Florian Grotz & Christof Hartmann (2001) Elections in Asia: A data handbook, Volume I, p603 ISBN   0-19-924958-X
  5. ↑ Alagappa, Muthiah (2001). Coercion and governance: the declining political role of the military in Asia. Stanford University Press. p. 415. ISBN   978-0-8047-4227-6.
  6. ↑ "Election in Burma". The New York Times . 28 April 1956.
  7. ↑ Associated Press (30 April 1956). "U Nu wins Burma vote". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
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