8888 Uprising

In 1988 mass protests across Burma against military-backed one-party rule culminated in a general strike on 8 August before a bloody coup ended the movement.

Overview

Economic collapse under the Burma Socialist Programme Party of Ne Win, including a demonetization that wiped out savings, led to student protests that grew into a national movement. A general strike began on 8 August 1988, the date that gave the uprising its name, and soldiers fired on demonstrators in Rangoon and other cities. Ne Win had resigned as party chairman in July, and Aung San Suu Kyi emerged as a leader of the democracy movement. On 18 September the military seized power as the State Law and Order Restoration Council. Thousands were killed during the unrest. The junta held elections in 1990 won by the National League for Democracy but refused to transfer power.