The Legislative Council of Burma was the legislative body of

British Burma British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and cultur ...

from 1897 to 1936.

Establishment

It was established in 1897 as an advisory council to the British colonial governor, the Lieutenant-Governor of Burma, in drafting legislation for

Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...

. The Legislative Council was initially an appointed body, established as a nine-member council consisting of four officials and five nominated non-officials. Its membership, which increased from nine to thirty members, predominantly represented foreign commercial interests. Prior to its establishment, Burmese laws were made in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, whereby laws drafted by the local administration in Burma were submitted to the Legislative Council of India for approval. After the passage of such laws, they were consented to by the Governor-General-in-Council and put into effect through publication within the Burma Gazette.

Restructuring

On 2 January 1923, with the enactment of the

Montagu–Chelmsford Reforms The Montagu–Chelmsford Reforms or more concisely the Mont–Ford Reforms, were introduced by the colonial government to introduce self-governing institutions gradually in British India. The reforms take their name from Edwin Montagu, the Sec ...

(which granted British India

dyarchy Diarchy (from Greek , ''di-'', "double", and , ''-arkhía'', "ruled"),Occasionally spelled ''dyarchy'', as in the ''Encyclopaedia Britannica'' article on the colonial British institution duarchy, or duumvirate. is a form of government charact ...

constitution, giving Burma a limited measure of self-rule), the Council was recast as a partially elected body. The new Legislative Council consisted of 103 seats, 80 filled by election, 8 by nomination of non-officials, 13 by nomination of officials, and 2 by members of the Governor's Executive Council ex-officio. The 80 elected seats were divided as follows: 22 to urban constituencies in 8 towns, with 8 of them to the

Burmese Indian Burmese Indians are a group of people of Indian origin who live in Myanmar (Burma). The term 'Burmese Indian' refers to a broad range of people from South Asia, most notably from present-day countries such as India and Bangladesh. While Indians ...

community; 49 to rural constituencies in 31 districts, with 5 to the Karen; and the remaining given to special constituencies like Rangoon University and various chambers of commerce. Elections were held in 1922,

1925 Events January * January 1 – The Syrian Federation is officially dissolved, the State of Aleppo and the State of Damascus having been replaced by the State of Syria (1925–1930), State of Syria. * January 3 – Benito Mussolini m ...

and

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly demonstrating that DNA is the genetic material. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris B ...

. Burmese nationalists, organized by the General Council of Burmese Associations, boycotted elections to the Legislative Council, and under 7% of the electorate voted in the 1922 elections. Turnout continued to be low: just over 16% in 1925, and 18% in 1928.

Presidents of Legislative Council

References

{{Authority control Legislatures of Myanmar British rule in Burma Organizations established in 1897 Defunct unicameral legislatures 1897 establishments in the British Empire