🔗 Share this article Conflict-ravaged Burma Votes in Widely Criticised Political Theater. The country's junta is holding a staggered election over the next month. The nation is holding an election in a electoral process widely dismissed as a sham, with major political parties banned, many of their leaders imprisoned and a significant portion of the country unlikely to vote because of an ongoing civil war. A Staggered Vote Amid War The ruling junta is holding a phased ballot nearly five years after it took control in a coup, which ignited massive protests and escalated into a civil war. Observers say the junta, with China's support, is seeking to legitimise and entrench its power as it seeks a way out of the devastating deadlock. "The environment does not allow for the exercise of the rights of freedom of expression, assembly or peaceful assembly," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk stated. Over two hundred people have been prosecuted for interfering with or opposing the polls under a new law which imposes harsh penalties, including the death penalty. Film director Mike Tee, performer Kyaw Win Htut and entertainer Ohn Daing were among the well-known individuals convicted under the law, which was enacted in July. They were each handed a prison sentence of seven years after speaking out against a promotional video promoting the elections. Logistical Nightmare and Pressure Civilians are "being coerced from all sides," Mr Türk noted in a statement, adding that armed rebel groups have made warnings urging people to shun the polls. The military has been fighting on several fronts, against both pro-democracy fighters who reject the coup, as well as ethnic armies which have their own forces. It ceded territory of vast areas of the country in a series of major setbacks, but regained territory this year following relentless airstrikes enabled by support from Beijing and Moscow. All of this and the fact that large parts of the country are still under opposition control presents a huge logistical challenge for holding an election. A Restricted Poll The ballot is set to take place in three phases over the next month in two hundred and seventy-four of the country's 330 townships, with the remainder deemed not secure enough. Outcomes are expected around the end of January. There is unlikely to be any voting in up to fifty percent of the country. Even in the townships that are voting, not all constituencies will go to the polls, making it difficult to predict a likely turnout. A handful of parties, including the junta-supported Union Solidarity and Development Party, are fielding candidates nationwide, while another 51 parties and non-aligned contenders will contest only at the state or regional levels. Approximately forty groups, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which scored decisive wins in 2015 and 2020, have been banned. Suu Kyi and a number of the party's senior figures have been imprisoned under charges widely condemned as politically motivated, while the rest are in exile. International Condemnation "By splitting the vote into stages, the junta can change their approach if the outcomes in the initial round do not go their way," commented Htin Kyaw Aye, a representative of the watchdog group Spring Sprouts. Western governments, including the UK and the European Parliament, have dismissed the vote as a sham, while neighbouring group Asean has called for negotiations to come before any election. The Burmese junta has rejected condemnation of the polls, insisting that it aims to "restore a multi-party democratic system". "This vote is being held for Myanmar. It is being held for the citizens of Myanmar. It is not intended for the outside world," a junta spokesman told a news conference last week. Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing warned earlier this week that those who refuse to vote are turning their back on "progress toward democracy".
The country's junta is holding a staggered election over the next month. The nation is holding an election in a electoral process widely dismissed as a sham, with major political parties banned, many of their leaders imprisoned and a significant portion of the country unlikely to vote because of an ongoing civil war. A Staggered Vote Amid War The ruling junta is holding a phased ballot nearly five years after it took control in a coup, which ignited massive protests and escalated into a civil war. Observers say the junta, with China's support, is seeking to legitimise and entrench its power as it seeks a way out of the devastating deadlock. "The environment does not allow for the exercise of the rights of freedom of expression, assembly or peaceful assembly," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk stated. Over two hundred people have been prosecuted for interfering with or opposing the polls under a new law which imposes harsh penalties, including the death penalty. Film director Mike Tee, performer Kyaw Win Htut and entertainer Ohn Daing were among the well-known individuals convicted under the law, which was enacted in July. They were each handed a prison sentence of seven years after speaking out against a promotional video promoting the elections. Logistical Nightmare and Pressure Civilians are "being coerced from all sides," Mr Türk noted in a statement, adding that armed rebel groups have made warnings urging people to shun the polls. The military has been fighting on several fronts, against both pro-democracy fighters who reject the coup, as well as ethnic armies which have their own forces. It ceded territory of vast areas of the country in a series of major setbacks, but regained territory this year following relentless airstrikes enabled by support from Beijing and Moscow. All of this and the fact that large parts of the country are still under opposition control presents a huge logistical challenge for holding an election. A Restricted Poll The ballot is set to take place in three phases over the next month in two hundred and seventy-four of the country's 330 townships, with the remainder deemed not secure enough. Outcomes are expected around the end of January. There is unlikely to be any voting in up to fifty percent of the country. Even in the townships that are voting, not all constituencies will go to the polls, making it difficult to predict a likely turnout. A handful of parties, including the junta-supported Union Solidarity and Development Party, are fielding candidates nationwide, while another 51 parties and non-aligned contenders will contest only at the state or regional levels. Approximately forty groups, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which scored decisive wins in 2015 and 2020, have been banned. Suu Kyi and a number of the party's senior figures have been imprisoned under charges widely condemned as politically motivated, while the rest are in exile. International Condemnation "By splitting the vote into stages, the junta can change their approach if the outcomes in the initial round do not go their way," commented Htin Kyaw Aye, a representative of the watchdog group Spring Sprouts. Western governments, including the UK and the European Parliament, have dismissed the vote as a sham, while neighbouring group Asean has called for negotiations to come before any election. The Burmese junta has rejected condemnation of the polls, insisting that it aims to "restore a multi-party democratic system". "This vote is being held for Myanmar. It is being held for the citizens of Myanmar. It is not intended for the outside world," a junta spokesman told a news conference last week. Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing warned earlier this week that those who refuse to vote are turning their back on "progress toward democracy".