The Irrawaddy
Aung Zaw
29 January 2021
29 January 2021
Former Myanmar military dictator Gen. Ne Win
Late on the evening of March 1, 1962, General Ne Win was among the honored guests at a Chinese ballet performance in Yangon. The general enjoyed a drink as he took in the show. Guests recalled seeing the general and his bodyguards return home soon after the performance ended.
But this relaxed scene was a façade. In the early hours of March 2, troops dispatched by the general arrived at the residences of government leaders and detained them. At 8:50 a.m. he went on the air to announced a military takeover of the government. Not even Ne Win’s close subordinates—including Brigadier General Aung Gyi, who would become the No. 2 in the Revolutionary Council formed shortly after the coup—had prior knowledge of the power grab.