🔗 Share this article War-torn Myanmar Votes in Widely Criticised Political Theater. The country's junta is conducting a staggered election over the coming weeks. The nation is holding an election in a electoral process widely dismissed as a sham, with key opposition groups banned, numerous figures jailed and a significant portion of the country unlikely to vote because of an continuing civil war. A Staggered Vote Amid Conflict The military government is holding a staggered election nearly half a decade after it seized power in a coup, which sparked widespread opposition and escalated into a devastating conflict. Observers say the junta, with backing from Beijing, is attempting to validate and consolidate its power as it looks for a way out of the costly deadlock. "There are no conditions for the practice of the freedoms of freedom of expression, assembly or peaceful assembly," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk stated. More than 200 people have been charged for disrupting or opposing the election under a new law which carries harsh penalties, including the death penalty. Director Mike Tee, actor Kyaw Win Htut and comedian Ohn Daing were among the well-known individuals convicted under the law, which was enacted in July. They were each handed a seven-year jail term after criticising a promotional video endorsing the elections. Immense Challenges and Pressure Civilians are "facing pressure from all sides," Mr Türk said in a comment, pointing out that armed rebel groups have issued their own threats asking people to shun the polls. The army has been fighting on multiple battlefields, against both armed resistance groups who reject the coup, as well as ethnic armed organisations which have their own militias. It ceded territory of vast areas of the country in a series of major setbacks, but regained territory this year following sustained aerial bombardment made possible through support from Beijing and Moscow. All of this and the fact that large parts of the country are still under rebel administration presents a huge logistical challenge for holding an election. A Limited Vote The ballot is set to take place in three phases over the next month in two hundred and seventy-four of the country's three hundred and thirty townships, with the rest deemed too unstable. Results are expected around the end of 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 go to the polls, making it difficult to predict a likely turnout. Six parties, including the junta-supported Union Solidarity and Development Party, are fielding candidates nationwide, while dozens more parties and non-aligned contenders will compete only at the state or regional levels. Approximately forty groups, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which achieved landslide victories 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 fabricated, while others are in hiding abroad. Criticism and Rejection "Through dividing the vote into phases, the authorities can adjust tactics if the results in the first phase do not go their way," commented Htin Kyaw Aye, a spokesman of the watchdog group Spring Sprouts. Western governments, including the UK and the European Parliament, have rejected the vote as a sham, while regional bloc Asean has called for political dialogue to precede any election. The Myanmar regime 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 our nation. It is being held for the citizens of this country. It is not intended for the outside world," a junta spokesman told a news conference last week. Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing cautioned 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 staggered election over the coming weeks. The nation is holding an election in a electoral process widely dismissed as a sham, with key opposition groups banned, numerous figures jailed and a significant portion of the country unlikely to vote because of an continuing civil war. A Staggered Vote Amid Conflict The military government is holding a staggered election nearly half a decade after it seized power in a coup, which sparked widespread opposition and escalated into a devastating conflict. Observers say the junta, with backing from Beijing, is attempting to validate and consolidate its power as it looks for a way out of the costly deadlock. "There are no conditions for the practice of the freedoms of freedom of expression, assembly or peaceful assembly," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk stated. More than 200 people have been charged for disrupting or opposing the election under a new law which carries harsh penalties, including the death penalty. Director Mike Tee, actor Kyaw Win Htut and comedian Ohn Daing were among the well-known individuals convicted under the law, which was enacted in July. They were each handed a seven-year jail term after criticising a promotional video endorsing the elections. Immense Challenges and Pressure Civilians are "facing pressure from all sides," Mr Türk said in a comment, pointing out that armed rebel groups have issued their own threats asking people to shun the polls. The army has been fighting on multiple battlefields, against both armed resistance groups who reject the coup, as well as ethnic armed organisations which have their own militias. It ceded territory of vast areas of the country in a series of major setbacks, but regained territory this year following sustained aerial bombardment made possible through support from Beijing and Moscow. All of this and the fact that large parts of the country are still under rebel administration presents a huge logistical challenge for holding an election. A Limited Vote The ballot is set to take place in three phases over the next month in two hundred and seventy-four of the country's three hundred and thirty townships, with the rest deemed too unstable. Results are expected around the end of 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 go to the polls, making it difficult to predict a likely turnout. Six parties, including the junta-supported Union Solidarity and Development Party, are fielding candidates nationwide, while dozens more parties and non-aligned contenders will compete only at the state or regional levels. Approximately forty groups, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which achieved landslide victories 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 fabricated, while others are in hiding abroad. Criticism and Rejection "Through dividing the vote into phases, the authorities can adjust tactics if the results in the first phase do not go their way," commented Htin Kyaw Aye, a spokesman of the watchdog group Spring Sprouts. Western governments, including the UK and the European Parliament, have rejected the vote as a sham, while regional bloc Asean has called for political dialogue to precede any election. The Myanmar regime 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 our nation. It is being held for the citizens of this country. It is not intended for the outside world," a junta spokesman told a news conference last week. Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing cautioned earlier this week that those who choose not to participate are turning their back on "the path to democracy".