Min Aung Hlaing and the Vandalization of Myanmar’s Economy

In the early morning of February 1, 2021, armored vehicles and military trucks rolled into Yangon and Naypyitaw and detained the government’s democratically elected leaders. Shortly after seizing power, coup leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing sought to justify his power grab, declaring on TV that there had been “terrible fraud in the voter list” during the recent general election held in November 2020.

Shortly before the coup, Min Aung Hlaing accused the country’s election commission of failing to do its job. The commission pushed back, saying there was no evidence to support the army’s claims.