This spectacular red-brick complex takes up a 6.5-hectare block but has been off limits to the public since 1962. Built in stages between 1889 and 1905, the Secretariat was the British seat of government for Burma. General Aung San and six of his colleagues were assassinated here in 1947. The complex also housed independent Burma's first National Assembly.
When the capital moved to Nay Pyi Taw in 2005 the building, renamed the Ministers Office, was mostly abandoned and its roof suffered damaged during Cyclone Nargis.
A reprieve came in 2011 when the Ministry of Construction selected it as one of five key Yangon heritage buildings to undergo basic renovations. The plans include a cultural centre and historical museum which will include Aung San's old office and the room where he was gunned down.
It's likely to be years before the barbed wire comes down and the public can once again re-enter the grounds and view the building from the flame tree–shaded lawns surrounding it. A technical study has put the cost of full restoration of the 400,000-sq-ft building at at least $100 million; the Anawmar Group has so far committed $30 million to the project.
