Current Events Lesson Plan: April 1-7, 2016
Current Event: A Civilian President in Myanmar
Recently, Htin Kyaw became the first civilian president of Myanmar since 1962. Kyaw is a staunch ally of Aung San Suu Kyi, a Burmese human rights activist whose struggle to return Myanmar to democracy earned her the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize—as well as a lengthy time under house arrest. In 2000, Htin Kyaw served four months in prison for helping Aung San Suu Kyi travel outside Yangon (also spelled Rangoon), the nation’s largest city. In 1962, Burmese Army General Ne Win seized power from the democratically elected government. Ne set up a Revolutionary Council of military leaders, which was the only political party allowed. Ne Win—who changed his title from general to president—and his party ruled strictly until 1988, when social and political unrest led the military to seize power from Ne Win. In recent years, the military had eased political restrictions and given more power to the nation’s elected Union Assembly. In 2010, they released Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest, but a complex system of laws bans her from ever serving as president. In March, Myanmar’s Union Assembly elected Htin Kyaw as the new president, but Aung San Suu Kyi is expected to govern through him.
Myanmar’s new President Htin Kyaw (at left) receives the presidential seal from outgoing president Thein Sein during the handover ceremony at the presidential palace in Naypyitaw March 30, 2016. Credit: © Ye Aung Thu, Pool/Reuters
Objective:
Myanmar, also called Burma, is a country in Southeast Asia. Yangon is Myanmar’s largest city and Naypyidaw is the capital. The people of Myanmar are called the Burmese. The great majority of them are Buddhists. Myanmar’s economy is based mainly on agriculture. Rice is Myanmar’s chief crop, and rice fields cover about half the farmland. People have lived in what is now Myanmar since prehistoric times. Several kingdoms arose and fell in the region from the A.D. 1000′s to the 1800′s, when the United Kingdom conquered the country. The nation won its independence in 1948. The Behind the Headlines news story and related World Book articles explore Myanmar and other countries.
Words to know:
Discussion Topics:
1. Ask your students what they know about Asia. (Students might say that Asia is the largest continent in both size and population; the world’s two most populous countries, China and India, are in Asia; Russia, the world’s largest country, lies mostly in Asia; the world’s highest (Mount Everest) and lowest (Dead Sea shore) places are in Asia; the world’s major religions began in Asia—Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism.)
2. Eight Asian countries have a population of at least 100 million. See how many of these countries your students can name. (Students should say Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Pakistan, Philippines, Russia.)
3. Ask your students to use World Book’s Timelines feature to view or add to the Asia: 1950’s to Present timeline. (Students may wish to use the “History” section of World Book’s “Asia” article for help.)
