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| Military Concedes Election to Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar | Military Concedes Election to Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| YANGON, Myanmar — Myanmar’s military establishment on Wednesday acknowledged the victory of the country’s democracy movement led by the Nobel Peace laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, raising hopes for a peaceful transfer of power after five decades of military domination. | YANGON, Myanmar — Myanmar’s military establishment on Wednesday acknowledged the victory of the country’s democracy movement led by the Nobel Peace laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, raising hopes for a peaceful transfer of power after five decades of military domination. |
| President Thein Sein sent his congratulations to Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi and her party for “gathering the support of the people.” The statement, delivered in a Facebook post, amounted to an admission of defeat by the president, a former general who has led the military-backed government for the past five years. | President Thein Sein sent his congratulations to Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi and her party for “gathering the support of the people.” The statement, delivered in a Facebook post, amounted to an admission of defeat by the president, a former general who has led the military-backed government for the past five years. |
| “The government will respect and follow the people’s choice and decision, and work on transferring power peacefully according to the timetable,” the Facebook message said. | “The government will respect and follow the people’s choice and decision, and work on transferring power peacefully according to the timetable,” the Facebook message said. |
| Both sides agreed to hold negotiations after the election commission announces the final results of the vote, expected later this month. | Both sides agreed to hold negotiations after the election commission announces the final results of the vote, expected later this month. |
| Winning a majority in both houses of Parliament, as the National League for Democracy appears to have done in Sunday’s elections, would give the party control over both the legislative and executive branches of government — a breathtaking sweep of power for the democracy movement. | |
| In a letter released by her party on Wednesday, Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi asked to meet with Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the commander in chief of the military. | In a letter released by her party on Wednesday, Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi asked to meet with Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the commander in chief of the military. |
| “It is crucial for the dignity of the nation that the people’s will, which was shown in the election of Nov. 8, be truly implemented in a peaceful and stable manner,” she wrote in the letter, which was dated Tuesday. | “It is crucial for the dignity of the nation that the people’s will, which was shown in the election of Nov. 8, be truly implemented in a peaceful and stable manner,” she wrote in the letter, which was dated Tuesday. |
| She sent similar letters to the president and the speaker of the lower house of Parliament. | She sent similar letters to the president and the speaker of the lower house of Parliament. |
| The office of General Min Aung Hlaing responded Wednesday night that the military “congratulates the National League for Democracy in getting a majority of seats” in the official results released so far. | |
| The departing speaker of the lower house of Parliament, Thura Shwe Mann, suggested that he was open to the meeting, saying on his Facebook page that he wished to “work together to build a stable, peaceful and developed country.” | The departing speaker of the lower house of Parliament, Thura Shwe Mann, suggested that he was open to the meeting, saying on his Facebook page that he wished to “work together to build a stable, peaceful and developed country.” |
| Mr. Shwe Mann lost his seat in Parliament in the election. | Mr. Shwe Mann lost his seat in Parliament in the election. |
| Despite the democracy movement’s triumph, the police, army and large parts of the bureaucracy will remain under the military’s direct control. | Despite the democracy movement’s triumph, the police, army and large parts of the bureaucracy will remain under the military’s direct control. |
| Analysts say the key to a functioning government will be cooperation between Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi and the military. The extent to which that is possible remains to be seen. | Analysts say the key to a functioning government will be cooperation between Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi and the military. The extent to which that is possible remains to be seen. |
| The new Parliament is expected to meet early next year and select a new president in March. | The new Parliament is expected to meet early next year and select a new president in March. |
| The military-drafted Constitution prohibits Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi from serving as president, but she has rankled the governing party, which is the political arm of the military, by saying she would serve above the president. | |
| “The president will be told exactly what he can do,” she told a television interviewer on Tuesday. “I make all the decisions because I am the leader of the winning party.” | |
| But she also sent signals that she was not out for revenge. She told another interviewer, “We are not going in for vengeance, and we are not going in for a series of Nurembergs.” | |
| She added that she would “uphold the parts of the Constitution that are good.” | She added that she would “uphold the parts of the Constitution that are good.” |
| The Constitution was written by the generals, who have ruled Myanmar for in one form or another since 1962, and was devised for them to retain significant power even in the case of electoral defeat. | The Constitution was written by the generals, who have ruled Myanmar for in one form or another since 1962, and was devised for them to retain significant power even in the case of electoral defeat. |
| By Wednesday evening, the commission had announced official results for 298 of the 491 seats contested in Sunday’s elections. Of those, Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi’s party, the National League for Democracy, won 256, and the ruling party won 21. | |
| There are 664 seats in the two houses of Parliament; the military appoints 166 of them. | There are 664 seats in the two houses of Parliament; the military appoints 166 of them. |
| The commission also announced that Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi had been re-elected to her seat, which was expected given the almost divine reverence that she commands across the country. | The commission also announced that Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi had been re-elected to her seat, which was expected given the almost divine reverence that she commands across the country. |