Myanmar pushes for constitutional change

Current constitution bars people with foreign relatives from becoming president and gives the military heavy influence.

Democracy activists in Myanmar have joined opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in calling for constitutional amendments ahead of next year’s election.

Drafted under the previous military regime, the constitution bars anyone whose relatives hold foreign citizenship from becoming president.

Suu Kyi’s late husband and two sons are British.

An amendment needs more than 75 percent approval from parliament, but the military holds 25 percent of the seats, thus giving it a veto.

Al Jazeera’s Florence Looi reports from Yangon.

Source: Al Jazeera