🔗 Share this article War-torn Myanmar Votes in Widely Criticised Political Theater. The country's junta is conducting a phased election over the coming weeks. The nation is holding an election in a vote broadly rejected as a farce, with key opposition groups dissolved, numerous figures jailed and as much as half of the country unlikely to vote because of an continuing internal conflict. A Phased Ballot Amid War The ruling junta is conducting a staggered election nearly five years after it seized power in a coup, which ignited widespread opposition and spiralled into a devastating conflict. Observers say the junta, with China's support, is seeking to legitimise and consolidate its power as it looks for a way out of the devastating stalemate. "The environment does not allow for the practice of the rights of free speech, association or peaceful protest," the United Nations' top human rights official Volker Türk stated. More than 200 people have been charged for disrupting or criticising the election under a new law which carries harsh penalties, including the possibility of execution. Film director Mike Tee, actor Kyaw Win Htut and entertainer Ohn Daing were among the well-known individuals convicted under the law, which was passed in July. They were each given a seven-year jail term after criticising a promotional video promoting the elections. Immense Challenges and Pressure Civilians are "being coerced from all sides," Mr Türk noted in a statement, adding that resistance forces have issued their own threats asking people to shun the polls. The military has been fighting on multiple battlefields, against both pro-democracy fighters who oppose 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 made possible through support from China and Russia. All of this and the fact that significant regions of the country are still under rebel administration presents a massive logistical challenge for holding an election. A Restricted Poll The ballot is set to take place in three rounds over the coming weeks in 274 of the country's 330 townships, with the rest deemed too unstable. Results are expected by late January. There is not expected to be any voting in as much as one half of the country. Even in the townships that are voting, some districts will hold elections, making it challenging to predict a possible turnout. Six parties, including the junta-supported Union Solidarity and Development Party, are running nominees nationwide, while dozens more parties and independent candidates will compete only at the local levels. Approximately forty groups, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which scored decisive wins in 2015 and 2020, have been dissolved. Suu Kyi and many of the party's key leaders have been jailed under charges widely condemned as politically motivated, while the rest are in exile. International Condemnation "By splitting the vote into stages, the authorities can change their approach if the outcomes in the initial round do not go their way," noted Htin Kyaw Aye, a representative of the watchdog group Spring Sprouts. Western governments, including the United Kingdom and the European Parliament, have rejected the vote as a pretence, while neighbouring group Asean has urged negotiations to come before any election. The Burmese junta has dismissed condemnation of the polls, maintaining that it aims to "return [the country] to a multi-party democratic system". "The election is being held for Myanmar. It is being held for the citizens of this country. It is not intended for the international community," a junta spokesman told a briefing last week. Military leader Min Aung Hlaing warned earlier this week that those who choose not to participate are turning their back on "the path to democracy".
The country's junta is conducting a phased election over the coming weeks. The nation is holding an election in a vote broadly rejected as a farce, with key opposition groups dissolved, numerous figures jailed and as much as half of the country unlikely to vote because of an continuing internal conflict. A Phased Ballot Amid War The ruling junta is conducting a staggered election nearly five years after it seized power in a coup, which ignited widespread opposition and spiralled into a devastating conflict. Observers say the junta, with China's support, is seeking to legitimise and consolidate its power as it looks for a way out of the devastating stalemate. "The environment does not allow for the practice of the rights of free speech, association or peaceful protest," the United Nations' top human rights official Volker Türk stated. More than 200 people have been charged for disrupting or criticising the election under a new law which carries harsh penalties, including the possibility of execution. Film director Mike Tee, actor Kyaw Win Htut and entertainer Ohn Daing were among the well-known individuals convicted under the law, which was passed in July. They were each given a seven-year jail term after criticising a promotional video promoting the elections. Immense Challenges and Pressure Civilians are "being coerced from all sides," Mr Türk noted in a statement, adding that resistance forces have issued their own threats asking people to shun the polls. The military has been fighting on multiple battlefields, against both pro-democracy fighters who oppose 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 made possible through support from China and Russia. All of this and the fact that significant regions of the country are still under rebel administration presents a massive logistical challenge for holding an election. A Restricted Poll The ballot is set to take place in three rounds over the coming weeks in 274 of the country's 330 townships, with the rest deemed too unstable. Results are expected by late January. There is not expected to be any voting in as much as one half of the country. Even in the townships that are voting, some districts will hold elections, making it challenging to predict a possible turnout. Six parties, including the junta-supported Union Solidarity and Development Party, are running nominees nationwide, while dozens more parties and independent candidates will compete only at the local levels. Approximately forty groups, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which scored decisive wins in 2015 and 2020, have been dissolved. Suu Kyi and many of the party's key leaders have been jailed under charges widely condemned as politically motivated, while the rest are in exile. International Condemnation "By splitting the vote into stages, the authorities can change their approach if the outcomes in the initial round do not go their way," noted Htin Kyaw Aye, a representative of the watchdog group Spring Sprouts. Western governments, including the United Kingdom and the European Parliament, have rejected the vote as a pretence, while neighbouring group Asean has urged negotiations to come before any election. The Burmese junta has dismissed condemnation of the polls, maintaining that it aims to "return [the country] to a multi-party democratic system". "The election is being held for Myanmar. It is being held for the citizens of this country. It is not intended for the international community," a junta spokesman told a briefing last week. Military leader Min Aung Hlaing warned earlier this week that those who choose not to participate are turning their back on "the path to democracy".