Naypyitaw – Myanmar’s parliament electeda close friend and confidant of Nobel laureate Aung SanSuu Kyias president on Tuesday, making Htin Kyaw the first head ofstate who does not hail from a military background since the1960s.

Suu Kyi led her National League for Democracy (NLD) to alandslide election win in November, but a constitution draftedby the former junta bars her from the top office.

She has vowed to run the country anyway through a proxy, andon Thursday the NLD nominated Htin Kyaw for the role. He runs acharity founded by Suu Kyi and has been a trusted member of herinner circle since the mid-1990s. He is not a lawmaker.

Htin Kyaw received 360 votes of the 652 cast, the parliamentary official counting the votes said on Tuesday.//AFP