Editing Republic of the Union of Myanmar

{{Infobox country|name=Republic of the Union of Myanmar|native_name=ပြည်ထောင်စု သမ္မတ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံတော်‌|image_flag=Myanmar flag.png|image_coat=Burma seal.png|image_map=Myanmar map.png|map_width=290|largest_city=[[Yangon]]|capital=[[Naypyidaw]]|official_languages=Burmese|government_type=Military junta|area_km2=676,578|population_census=53,582,855|population_census_year=2017}}

The '''Republic of the Union of Myanmar''', also known as '''Myanmar''' or '''Burma''', is a country in [[Southeast Asia]].

== History ==
Myanmar was colonized by the [[British]] beginning in 1824 and gained its independence in 1948.<ref name=":0" /> It was the first non-socialist country to recognize the [[People's Republic of China]].<ref name=":1">{{News citation|author=Maitreya Bhakal|newspaper=[[Mango Press]]|title=After One Coup Recently Failed in America, Another Succeeds in Myanmar|date=2021-03-02|url=https://www.mango-press.com/after-one-coup-recently-failed-in-america-another-succeeds-in-myanmar/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220604203012/https://www.mango-press.com/after-one-coup-recently-failed-in-america-another-succeeds-in-myanmar/|archive-date=2022-06-04|retrieved=2022-06-27}}</ref> In 1962, the [[Burma Socialist Programme Party]] came to power in a military coup. The new government nationalized businesses and hospitals and implemented public education, free healthcare, and land reforms. However, not all ethnicities and religious groups benefitted from these changes because of the Buddhist nationalist character of the military junta. In 1974, a single-party system was established.<ref name=":0" />

In 1988, a multi-party system was established after a nationwide referendum. In 2008, a new constitution was drafted that gave 25% of government seats to unelected military representatives. President [[Thein Sein]] began a series of reforms in 2010, but the Western-backed [[National League for Democracy]] party, led by [[Aung San Suu Kyi]], won a majority in the 2012 elections.

The NLD was supported by the [[United States of America|U.S.]] government and received $375 million of support from the [[Barack Obama|Obama]] administration.<ref name=":0">{{News citation|author=Satya Vatti|newspaper=[[Liberation School]]|title=The plight of the Rohingya: sorting through the propaganda|date=2017-10-05|url=https://www.liberationschool.org/the-plight-of-the-rohingya-sorting-through-the-propaganda/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210712192423/https://www.liberationschool.org/the-plight-of-the-rohingya-sorting-through-the-propaganda/|archive-date=2021-07-12|retrieved=2022-06-24}}</ref>

== Rohingya genocide ==
The Rohingya people are predominantly [[Islam|Muslims]] and mostly live in [[Rakhine State]] on the border with [[People's Republic of Bangladesh|Bangladesh]]. Over a million Rohingya people have fled from Myanmar to Bangladesh since 1948. The Buddhist Burmese government considers them illegal immigrants from Bangladesh.

In 2012, the [[Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army]] was founded in an effort to create an independent, democratic Muslim state for the Rohingya people. In 2017, after the ARSA attacked a Burmese military camp, the government attacked hundreds of Rohingya.<ref name=":0" />

Aung San Suu Kyi received a Nobel Peace Prize despite supporting the military's persecution of the Rohingya.<ref name=":1" />

== References ==
[[Category:Countries]]
<references />
[[Category:Global south]]