Burma is run by an oppresive military government, otherwise known as the junta, which took power in a coup in 1962. After only 14 short years of democracy after gaining indipendance from the UK, General Ne Win seized power on the 2nd March, becoming Prime Minister and chairman of the revolutionary council.
Before seizing power General Ne Win had also stepped in as interim Prime Minister in 1958 when the current prime minister, U Nu, only just survived a vote against his confidence as a leader. Ne Win restored order to Burma and reliquished his power in 1960 when U Nu won the election.
In 1990 an election which was held, which was won in a landslide by Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy party, with 59% of the votes, however she was barred from office and instead was put under house arrest, and the junta continued to rule.
This military coup led to Burma becoming a single party socialist state with everything being controlled by the government, and ethnic groups being punished especially. Now the head of state is Than Shwe, although this could all change when the results of the election are released.
Interesting: a single-party socialist state sounds very similar to South Korea, before it had free elections. Some sort of graphic time-line might help to illustrate it. I'm interested too in what in practice that means for the country, and its domestic population, even it relations with it's neighbours.
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