The Arakan National Party (;

abbreviated An abbreviation () is a shortened form of a word or phrase, by any method including shortening, contraction, initialism (which includes acronym), or crasis. An abbreviation may be a shortened form of a word, usually ended with a trailing per ...

ANP), is a

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

(Burma), representing the interests of the Rakhine people in

Rakhine State Rakhine State ( ; , ; ), formerly known as Arakan State, is a Administrative divisions of Myanmar, state in Myanmar (Burma). Situated on the western coast, it is bordered by Chin State to the north, Magway Region, Bago Region and Ayeyarwady Re ...

and Yangon Region. The party was founded on 13 January 2014 and registered with the

Union Election Commission The Union Election Commission (, abbreviated UEC) is the national level electoral commission of Myanmar (Burma), responsible for organising and overseeing elections in Burma, as well as vetting parliamentary candidates and political parties. ...

on 6 March 2014. The chairman of the ANP is Thar Htun Hla. The party is known for its hardline ethnic nationalist stance, as well as its Islamophobic and anti- Rohingya positions. Some members of the party were involved in instigating violence against Rohingya people during the communal riots in 2012, which left dozens dead and thousands homeless.

History

The Rakhine Nationalities Development Party (RNDP), led by Dr. Aye Maung, and the Arakan League for Democracy (ALD), led by Aye Thar Aung, signed an agreement on 17 June 2013 to merge into a single party under the name "Arakan National Party" after more than eight months of negotiations. In the 2015 general election, the party contested 63 seats in

, Chin State, Ayeyarwady Region, and Yangon Region. The party won 10 seats in the Amyotha Hluttaw, 12 in the Pyithu Hluttaw, 22 in the Rakhine State Hluttaw, and one party member became an Ethnic Affairs Minister. Former leaders of the ALD announced on 8 January 2017 that they were splitting from the ANP and were re-registering with the Union Election Commission for the 2020 elections, citing internal issues and RNDP dominance in the ANP as the reasons for the split. On 27 November 2017, Dr. Aye Maung resigned as the party chairman and member, citing persistent conflicts within the top ranks of the party. On 2 July 2024, the

State Administration Council The State Administration Council (; abbreviated SAC or နစက) is the military junta currently governing Myanmar, established by Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services Min Aung Hlaing following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, February 2021 c ...

junta's Union Election Commission barred the ANP from taking part in the 2025 election due to alleged links with the Arakha Army.Myanmar shuns ethnic party from planned elections
Radio Free Asia. July 2, 2024

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arakan National Party 2014 establishments in Myanmar Buddhist political parties Far-right politics in Myanmar Nationalist parties in Myanmar Political parties established in 2014 Political parties in Myanmar Right-wing parties Right-wing politics in Myanmar Authoritarianism Political parties of minorities in Myanmar Anti-Islam political parties Rakhine State

History

See also

References