RANGOON — Burma’s Lower House of Parliament on Monday deferred debate on 14 bills until the new assembly convenes in February.
The decision followed a request from the Lower House Draft Bill Committee that some bills be put on hold so as not to rush through complicated legislation on issues such as constitutional protection.
Committee member Steven, a member of the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), told lawmakers that the bills in question warranted more time to “broadly discuss” changes before passage.
The postponed legislation includes the Nuclear Disaster Protection Bill and the Prison Bill, as well as amendments to the Constitutional Protection Bill, the Land Confiscation Bill, the 1950 Emergency Management Bill, the Private Education Bill, the Weapons Act and the Suppression of Prostitution Act.
The current Parliament, dominated by the USDP, has had an industrious last session as it prepares to hand over a majority of seats to the National League for Democracy (NLD).
The NLD, chaired by Aung San Suu Kyi, won a landslide vote in the Nov. 8 general election, handing the party a majority in both houses. The new assembly is scheduled to convene on Feb. 1.