🔗 Share this article War-torn Burma 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 electoral process broadly rejected as a farce, with major political parties banned, many of their leaders imprisoned and as much as half of the country unable to participate because of an continuing civil war. A Staggered Vote Amid War The ruling junta is holding a staggered election nearly five years after it took control in a coup, which ignited massive protests and spiralled into a civil war. Observers say the military regime, with backing from Beijing, is attempting to validate and entrench its power as it seeks a way out of the devastating stalemate. "There are no conditions for the practice of the rights of freedom of expression, association or peaceful protest," the United Nations' top human rights official Volker Türk said. Over two hundred people have been prosecuted for interfering with or opposing the polls under a recently enacted legislation which imposes severe punishments, including the possibility of execution. Film director Mike Tee, performer Kyaw Win Htut and entertainer Ohn Daing were among the well-known individuals found guilty under the law, which was passed in July. They were each given a prison sentence of seven years after speaking out against a film endorsing the elections. Logistical Nightmare and Pressure Civilians are "being coerced from all sides," Mr Türk noted in a comment, adding that resistance forces have made warnings urging people to shun the polls. The army has been engaged on multiple battlefields, against both armed resistance groups who oppose the coup, as well as ethnic armies which have their own militias. It lost control of large parts of the country in a string of defeats, but clawed back territory this year after relentless airstrikes enabled by support from Beijing and Moscow. All of this and the fact that significant regions of the country are still under opposition control presents a massive operational hurdle for holding an election. A Limited Vote Voting is set to take place in three phases over the coming weeks in two hundred and seventy-four of the country's three hundred and thirty townships, with the rest deemed not secure enough. Outcomes are expected around the end of January. There is unlikely to be any voting in as much as one half of the country. Even in the townships that are voting, not all constituencies will hold elections, making it difficult to predict a likely turnout. Six parties, including the junta-supported Union Solidarity and Development Party, are fielding candidates nationwide, while another 51 parties and non-aligned contenders will compete only at the local levels. Some 40 parties, 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 broadly viewed as politically motivated, while others are in exile. International Condemnation "By splitting the vote into stages, the authorities can change their approach if the outcomes in the first phase do not go their way," commented Htin Kyaw Aye, a representative of the election-monitoring group Spring Sprouts. Western governments, including the UK and the EU legislature, have rejected the vote as a pretence, while neighbouring group Asean has urged political dialogue to come before any election. The Myanmar regime has rejected criticism of the polls, insisting that it aims to "return [the country] to a democracy with multiple parties". "This vote is being held for our nation. It is being held for the people of this country. It is not intended for the international community," a military representative stated at a briefing last week. Military leader Min Aung Hlaing warned earlier this week that those who refuse to vote 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 electoral process broadly rejected as a farce, with major political parties banned, many of their leaders imprisoned and as much as half of the country unable to participate because of an continuing civil war. A Staggered Vote Amid War The ruling junta is holding a staggered election nearly five years after it took control in a coup, which ignited massive protests and spiralled into a civil war. Observers say the military regime, with backing from Beijing, is attempting to validate and entrench its power as it seeks a way out of the devastating stalemate. "There are no conditions for the practice of the rights of freedom of expression, association or peaceful protest," the United Nations' top human rights official Volker Türk said. Over two hundred people have been prosecuted for interfering with or opposing the polls under a recently enacted legislation which imposes severe punishments, including the possibility of execution. Film director Mike Tee, performer Kyaw Win Htut and entertainer Ohn Daing were among the well-known individuals found guilty under the law, which was passed in July. They were each given a prison sentence of seven years after speaking out against a film endorsing the elections. Logistical Nightmare and Pressure Civilians are "being coerced from all sides," Mr Türk noted in a comment, adding that resistance forces have made warnings urging people to shun the polls. The army has been engaged on multiple battlefields, against both armed resistance groups who oppose the coup, as well as ethnic armies which have their own militias. It lost control of large parts of the country in a string of defeats, but clawed back territory this year after relentless airstrikes enabled by support from Beijing and Moscow. All of this and the fact that significant regions of the country are still under opposition control presents a massive operational hurdle for holding an election. A Limited Vote Voting is set to take place in three phases over the coming weeks in two hundred and seventy-four of the country's three hundred and thirty townships, with the rest deemed not secure enough. Outcomes are expected around the end of January. There is unlikely to be any voting in as much as one half of the country. Even in the townships that are voting, not all constituencies will hold elections, making it difficult to predict a likely turnout. Six parties, including the junta-supported Union Solidarity and Development Party, are fielding candidates nationwide, while another 51 parties and non-aligned contenders will compete only at the local levels. Some 40 parties, 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 broadly viewed as politically motivated, while others are in exile. International Condemnation "By splitting the vote into stages, the authorities can change their approach if the outcomes in the first phase do not go their way," commented Htin Kyaw Aye, a representative of the election-monitoring group Spring Sprouts. Western governments, including the UK and the EU legislature, have rejected the vote as a pretence, while neighbouring group Asean has urged political dialogue to come before any election. The Myanmar regime has rejected criticism of the polls, insisting that it aims to "return [the country] to a democracy with multiple parties". "This vote is being held for our nation. It is being held for the people of this country. It is not intended for the international community," a military representative stated at a briefing last week. Military leader Min Aung Hlaing warned earlier this week that those who refuse to vote are turning their back on "the path to democracy".