Feb. 1, the Burmese military took over the democratically elected government, declaring the country’s Nov. 2020 election illegitimate because of unsubstantiated claims of electoral fraud. The Burmese military ruled Myanmar for several decades until 2011, when they allowed democratic elections for the first time. The military reestablished its authoritarian rule this month after the people didn’t elect enough pro-military representatives. The University of Wisconsin’s Southeast Asia Research Group and members of the Center for Southeast Asian Studies released a statement condemning the Burmese coup and “call[ing] upon the international community to denounce this violation of democracy, freedom and human rights.”