An analytical study of Ne Win’s 1962 coup d’etat in Burma

Abstract

Ne Win made military coup and usurped political power from civilian government in 1962. This coup and the period are significant in Myanmar’s modern history because more than forty years of military rule starting from the year resulted in the loss of political space for other political actors. Explanations for this period are still in vagueness and filled with confusion. The coup in 1962 was tried to be legitimized by claiming that it was the means of preventing the breakup of the Union. However, the military seemed to wait for taking political power. Some scholar’s works tried to point out the rift within the military, however, Ne Win’s role is not clear in that framework even though he is the only person who could lead the coup d’état. This thesis analyzed the causes of the coup from triggering motives and structural causes, in particular, focusing on the economic activities of the military before and after the coup related with the course of nationalization and the purge of an officer. Furthermore, the elite group of the military was examined with the pattern of purge as the group is the prominent political actor since War time Burma. Analyzing the mechanism of this coup with political actor, motives and historical structure, author tried to find ‘genes’ of coup d’état in Burma in order to have some hints for future prevention from the view point of rational state governance.This coup d’état was the result of the combination of triggering motives and structural causes. Those factors are intertwined and influenced upon each other. Emotional upheaval of Burmese ethnic nationalism stimulated through religious and federal issues sought for direction to flow out under the circumstances of the political power vacuum. Significantly, core officers group was keen in politics to and had experience of military operations for taking state power in the resistance movement for her independence.