Big congrats are in order for former President Thein Sein, who was announced as the recipient of the grand prize at this year’s Asia Cosmopolitan Awards!
Never heard of the Asian Cosmopolitan Awards? Neither have we, but here’s a quick primer so that we all know what to write in our congratulatory cards.
The biennial awards are organized by the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) and there are three prizes up for grabs: the Grand Prize, an Economic and Social Science Prize and a Cultural Prize. The selection committee that chooses the recipients of each prize is “composed of distinguished representatives of several East Asian countries from various backgrounds.”
According to their site, the awards “strive to become the East Asian Nobel Prize”. Sounds impressive.
The winners of each prize are individuals who “have made substantial and significant contributions to the development of a peaceful and stable East Asian Community, to narrow the developmental gaps in the region, as well as to establish the sustainable social growth towards cultural and economic integration within East Asia”.
According to the official press release, the prize was rewarded to Thein Sein “for his leadership during Myanmar [sic] transitional period”.
Thein Sein served as Prime Minister from 2007-2010, and then took on the role of president following the 2010 elections. His presidency ended this year when the National League of Democracy won the majority of votes in the 2015 general election.
In our humble opinion, while Thein Sein does deserve kudos for some of the things he accomplished during his presidency, let’s not forget all the other, shall we say, problematic, aspects of his rule, including the imprisonment of a poet for writing about a prestident-shaped tattoo on his genital area.
A source close to the ex-president told The Voice that it’s not yet confirmed whether Thein Sein will attend the awards ceremony, which will be held in Nara Precture, Japan, on January 15 of next year.
