🔗 Share this article Conflict-ravaged Myanmar Goes to the Polls in Widely Criticised Political Theater. The country's military is conducting a phased election over the coming weeks. The nation is holding an election in a vote broadly rejected as a sham, with key opposition groups banned, many of their leaders imprisoned and a significant portion of the country unable to participate because of an ongoing internal conflict. A Phased Ballot Amid Conflict The ruling junta is holding a phased ballot nearly half a decade after it took control in a takeover, which ignited massive protests and escalated into a civil war. Observers say the junta, with backing from Beijing, is seeking to legitimise and entrench its power as it seeks a way out of the costly stalemate. "The environment does not allow for the practice of the rights of freedom of expression, assembly or peaceful assembly," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said. Over two hundred people have been prosecuted for interfering with or criticising the election under a new law which imposes harsh penalties, including the possibility of execution. Director Mike Tee, performer Kyaw Win Htut and comedian Ohn Daing were among the well-known individuals found guilty under the law, which was passed in July. They were each handed a prison sentence of seven years after speaking out against a film promoting the elections. Immense Challenges and Coercion Civilians are "being coerced from all sides," Mr Türk noted in a statement, adding that resistance forces have made warnings asking people to boycott the polls. The army has been fighting on several fronts, against both pro-democracy fighters who reject the coup, as well as ethnic armies which have their own militias. It ceded territory of large parts of the country in a series of major setbacks, but regained territory this year after relentless airstrikes enabled by support from China and Russia. All of this and the fact that significant regions of the country are still under rebel administration presents a huge operational hurdle for holding an election. A Restricted Poll The ballot is set to take place in three phases over the next month in 274 of the country's three hundred and thirty townships, with the remainder deemed too unstable. Outcomes 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, not all constituencies will go to the polls, making it difficult to predict a likely turnout. Six parties, including the military-backed 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 achieved decisive wins in 2015 and 2020, have been banned. Suu Kyi and a number of the party's key leaders have been jailed under charges broadly viewed as politically motivated, while others are in hiding abroad. Criticism and Rejection "Through dividing the vote into phases, the junta can change their approach 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 pretence, while neighbouring group Asean has urged political dialogue to precede any election. The Burmese junta has dismissed condemnation of the polls, insisting that it aims to "restore a democracy with multiple parties". "This vote is being held for Myanmar. It is being held for the citizens of this country. It is not being held 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 choose not to participate are turning their back on "the path to democracy".
The country's military is conducting a phased election over the coming weeks. The nation is holding an election in a vote broadly rejected as a sham, with key opposition groups banned, many of their leaders imprisoned and a significant portion of the country unable to participate because of an ongoing internal conflict. A Phased Ballot Amid Conflict The ruling junta is holding a phased ballot nearly half a decade after it took control in a takeover, which ignited massive protests and escalated into a civil war. Observers say the junta, with backing from Beijing, is seeking to legitimise and entrench its power as it seeks a way out of the costly stalemate. "The environment does not allow for the practice of the rights of freedom of expression, assembly or peaceful assembly," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said. Over two hundred people have been prosecuted for interfering with or criticising the election under a new law which imposes harsh penalties, including the possibility of execution. Director Mike Tee, performer Kyaw Win Htut and comedian Ohn Daing were among the well-known individuals found guilty under the law, which was passed in July. They were each handed a prison sentence of seven years after speaking out against a film promoting the elections. Immense Challenges and Coercion Civilians are "being coerced from all sides," Mr Türk noted in a statement, adding that resistance forces have made warnings asking people to boycott the polls. The army has been fighting on several fronts, against both pro-democracy fighters who reject the coup, as well as ethnic armies which have their own militias. It ceded territory of large parts of the country in a series of major setbacks, but regained territory this year after relentless airstrikes enabled by support from China and Russia. All of this and the fact that significant regions of the country are still under rebel administration presents a huge operational hurdle for holding an election. A Restricted Poll The ballot is set to take place in three phases over the next month in 274 of the country's three hundred and thirty townships, with the remainder deemed too unstable. Outcomes 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, not all constituencies will go to the polls, making it difficult to predict a likely turnout. Six parties, including the military-backed 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 achieved decisive wins in 2015 and 2020, have been banned. Suu Kyi and a number of the party's key leaders have been jailed under charges broadly viewed as politically motivated, while others are in hiding abroad. Criticism and Rejection "Through dividing the vote into phases, the junta can change their approach 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 pretence, while neighbouring group Asean has urged political dialogue to precede any election. The Burmese junta has dismissed condemnation of the polls, insisting that it aims to "restore a democracy with multiple parties". "This vote is being held for Myanmar. It is being held for the citizens of this country. It is not being held 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 choose not to participate are turning their back on "the path to democracy".