
Leaders of a party that was dissolved two years ago following the arrest of its controversial founder are making plans for a post-coup revival, according to party sources.
The United Democratic Party (UDP)—popularly known as the Hninsi, or Rose, Party—was disbanded less than a month before Myanmar’s November 2020 election for possession of millions of dollars in illegal funds from China.
That move came a month after the arrest of the party’s chair, Kyaw Myint, who was later charged with breaking out of prison two decades earlier and violating the Immigration Act and the Financial Institutions Law.
Despite the fact that its leader remains behind bars in Yangon’s Insein Prison, however, party sources say that some senior members have begun “reforming” the party with an eye to running when the coup regime decides to hold elections.
According to Thet Oo, the UDP’s Bago Region chair, a group was formed by party secretary Thidar Zin in early September to begin the process of rebuilding the party.
“I’ve been told that it was Thidar Zin who founded the group, but because we disagreed on so many matters, she didn’t let me know about it. I found out anyway, through the grapevine. Some people are willing to go back and some are not,” said Thet Oo.

Other party members confirmed this information, and added that most of the UDP’s central executive committee (CEC) had declined to join the group, as they disagreed with trying to restart the party while its leader was still in prison.
“Most of the CEC didn’t go back. Same with the state and regional chairs. The majority of those who did were township-level officers and party representatives working under the state chair,” said Mya Nyein, the former chair of the UDP’s southern Shan State branch.
It remains unclear whether the junta would even allow the UDP to run in any future election. According to Mya Nyein, the party has twice appealed to the regime to pardon Kyaw Myint, but did not receive a response either time.
Last year, coup leader Min Aung Hlaing criticised the ousted ruling party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), for the disbandment of the UDP ahead of the 2020 election, saying that he was “disappointed” with the decision. Junta-controlled media even suggested that the move had been timed to eliminate a powerful political rival.
Despite fielding the second-largest number of candidates in the election, however, the UDP was not considered a strong contender, as it had failed to win even a single seat in elections held in 2010 and 2015.

While the party lacked a strong political base, it was unusually well-funded, and it used its abundant financial resources not only to run an expensive, nationwide campaign, but also to acquire an impressive headquarters and other property valued at a total of 80 billion kyat ($38 million).
An investigation carried out after Kyaw Myint’s arrest revealed that much of this money—at least 16 billion kyat, or $7.6 million—came from China, while other funds were raised through an unlicensed moneylending business.
This discovery led to a decision by the Union Election Commission to disband the party on October 17, 2020, for violations of the Registration of Political Parties Law.
The party’s assets were also seized, and at present, its headquarters in Yangon’s Hlaing Township remains shuttered. A notice states that it is under the temporary control of the junta’s “Anti-Money Laundering Central Force” and warns that trespassers will be prosecuted.

At a press conference held on September 21, Gen Zaw Min Tun, the junta’s spokesperson, was asked to comment on the status of the party.
“We have found—after analysing the Hninsi Party’s actions—that some actions were taken rightfully against the party because their actions violated some laws and bylaws,” he said.
Kyaw Myint broke out of Mandalay’s Obo Prison in 1999 and later sought political asylum abroad, first in the United States and then in Canada, where he formed the UDP in 2007.
Prisoners released from Insein Prison say that he is in good health.
“They gave him a private room by combining two cells in Building 5. But he isn’t allowed to see anyone,” said one ex-prisoner.