Scrapping charter would cause 'chaos', USDP says

In a statement on Saturday, the USDP said its stance is to review and amend the 2008 Constitution.

The party is now studying the 2008 Constitution, drawn up by the then-military government, in detail and will submit its suggestions on amendments to parliament. 

On September 28, the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) and ethnic political parties issued a joint statement pledging a public poll on whether to amend the Constitution or draft a new one.

The statement said the Constitution carries provisions that are undemocratic and inconsistent in its prevention of rights for national races, deterrence of a multi-party democracy, lack of proper checks and balances for executive, judicial and legislative powers, absence of equal rights for all citizens, and lack of guarantees of a fair election in 2015.

Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has stated her desire to run for president in 2015 but is barred from doing so by the current charter because she has foreign children. She  has asked for 100-per-cent participation from the military to amend the charter.

“The 2008 Constitution needs to be amended before 2015 in order to avoid a crisis,” Suu Kyi has said.

Parliament’s constitutional review joint committee is set to submit its findings on the 2008 charter to parliament by December 31.