Flag of Myanmar

Flag of the Union of Burma (4 January 1948 – 3 January 1974).
Proportion 5:9; National flag and State ensign.

The two flags used by the country immediately prior to the 2010 flag both originated in the Burmese Resistance, which adopted a red flag with a white star when fighting the occupying Japanese forces during World War II.

The flag adopted upon independence from the United Kingdom on 4 January 1948 consisted of a red field with a blue canton. The blue canton was charged with one large white star, representing the union, surrounded by 5 smaller stars representing the main ethnic groups found within the newly independent state.[3] This flag remained in use until January 1974 and has a ratio of 5:9.[4]

Flag of the Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma (3 January 1974 – 18 September 1988) and the Union of Myanmar (18 September 1988 – 21 October 2010).
Proportion 5:9; National flag and State ensign.

The new flag adopted on 3 January 1974 upon the declaration of a socialist republic by Ne Win has a similar ratio as the previous flag and depicted 14 stars, encircling a gear and a rice plant (the logo of the Burma Socialist Programme Party) in a blue-coloured canton against a red field. The rice stands for agriculture, the gear represents industry, and the 14 stars represent each of the 14 member states of the Union.[5] The 14-star flag was hung upside down during the 8888 Uprising of 1988 by the protesters as a sign of protest against the military government.

Flag of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, in use since 21 October 2010.

Flag of Myanmar flown at Byint Naung Statue Garden Park in Kawthaung.

The flag of Myanmar flown alongside the flag of Tanintharyi Region on 1199 Mountain Peak in Kawthaung.

Myanmar flag design

A new design for the national flag was proposed on 10 November 2006 during a constitutional convention. The new flag would have consisted of three equally sized green, yellow, and red horizontal stripes, with a white star in the hoist end of the green stripe.[5]

In September 2007 another new design was proposed, this time with a larger white star in the middle and with the stripes in a different order, namely: yellow, green, red.[5] That same order was used in the flag of the State of Burma during the Japanese occupation of Burma, which featured a green peacock in the centre.

The proposal was a fusion of the flag of the State of Burma without the royal peacock, taking instead the white star that symbolised the Union of Burma in the canton of its flag.

The flag proposed in September 2007 was included in the new constitution, and was accepted with the 2008 referendum.[6] Officials were told to lower the old flag in favour of the new one only shortly before 3:00 p.m. local time on 21 October 2010.[2] Orders were also handed out to ensure all old flags were burned.[6] The adoption of the new flag was announced on state media just prior to the flag changing.[2]

The new flag is a horizontal tricolor flag of yellow, green, and red charged with a five-pointed white star in the middle of the field. The yellow represents solidarity; the green symbolizes peace, tranquility and lush greenery; the red represents courage and determination; and the white star stands for the significance of the union of the country.[5] Green, yellow, and red are also considered the Pan-African colours, leading commentators to note that the new flag looked distinctly "African" and even that it was being confused for the flag of an African country.[7]

The ruling National League for Democracy (NLD) proposed a series of constitutional amendments in July 2019, including one to change the national flag. Four political parties, the NLD, SNLD, ZCD and NUP proposed four designs of flags.[8] The NLD proposed changing the national flag as they do not believe that the flag adopted in 2010 has the full support of the people of Myanmar.[9] Their proposed flag was based on the flag adopted by the country at independence and consists of a red field with a blue canton in the upper hoist. Within the blue canton is a large white star representing the union which is surrounded by 14 smaller white stars representing the states and regions of the country.[10]

• 
  The NLD's proposal
• 
  The SNLD's proposal
• 
  The ZCD's proposal
• 
  The NUP's proposal

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  Flag used in the Hanthawaddy Kingdom (c.1300–1500)
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  Flag of the Third Burmese Empire under the Konbaung dynasty (1752–1885)
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  Flag of British Burma as a part of British India (1824–1937)
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  Flag of British Burma as a separate colony (1939–1941; 1945 – January 3, 1948)
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  Provisional flag of British Burma (30 March 1941–1942)
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  Provisional flag used during the Japanese Occupation (1942–1943)
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  Flag of the State of Burma (1943–1945)
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  Variant design of the flag of the State of Burma (1943–1945)