Country ‘on threshold of hope’

Myanmar stands “on the threshold of hope” according to Cardinal Charles Maung Bo of Yangon, writes Ellen Teague.

Speaking last week in Geneva he said that, “after over half a century of brutal oppression at the hands of a succession of military regimes, and after more than 60 years of civil war, we now have the possibility to begin to build a new Myanmar, to develop the values of democracy, to better protect and promote human rights, to work for peace”.

President-elect Htin Kyaw will be sworn in on 30 March. The first civilian president in more than 50 years, he is a close aide of National League for Democracy leader and former political prisoner, Aung San Suu Kyi.

Christian MPs have backed a proposal by the incoming government for the formation of a new ethnic affairs ministry. They said the move will advance reconciliation among the country’s more than 100 ethnic groups.