🔗 Share this article Conflict-ravaged Burma Votes in Broadly Condemned Political Theater. The country's military is holding a phased election over the coming weeks. The nation is holding an election in a vote broadly rejected as a sham, with major political parties banned, many of their leaders imprisoned and as much as half of the country unlikely to vote because of an ongoing internal conflict. A Staggered Vote Amid Conflict The ruling junta is conducting a phased ballot nearly five years after it seized power in a coup, which ignited widespread opposition and spiralled into a civil war. Analysts note the junta, with backing from Beijing, is attempting to validate and consolidate its power as it seeks a way out of the devastating deadlock. "There are no conditions for the practice of the rights of free speech, association or peaceful assembly," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said. More than 200 people have been prosecuted for interfering with or opposing the election under a recently enacted legislation which imposes severe punishments, including the death penalty. Director Mike Tee, performer Kyaw Win Htut and entertainer Ohn Daing were among the prominent figures 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 endorsing the elections. Immense Challenges and Pressure Civilians are "facing pressure from all sides," Mr Türk noted in a comment, pointing out that resistance forces have made warnings asking people to shun the polls. The military has been engaged on several fronts, against both pro-democracy fighters who oppose the coup, as well as ethnic armies which have their own militias. It lost control of vast areas of the country in a string of defeats, but clawed back territory this year after relentless airstrikes made possible through 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 conducting an election. A Restricted Poll The ballot is set to take place in three rounds over the next month in two hundred and seventy-four of the country's three hundred and thirty townships, with the remainder deemed too unstable. Outcomes are expected by late January. There is unlikely 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 difficult to forecast a possible turnout. Six parties, including the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party, are fielding candidates nationwide, while another 51 parties and independent candidates will contest only at the local levels. Some 40 parties, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which scored decisive wins in 2015 and 2020, have been banned. Suu Kyi and many of the party's key leaders have been imprisoned under charges widely condemned as fabricated, while the rest are in exile. International Condemnation "By splitting the vote into stages, the junta 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 United Kingdom and the EU legislature, have dismissed the vote as a sham, while regional bloc Asean has urged negotiations to come before any election. The Myanmar regime has rejected condemnation of the polls, maintaining that it aims to "return [the country] to a multi-party democratic system". "This vote is being held for our nation. It is being held for the people of Myanmar. It is not intended for the outside world," 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 "progress toward democracy".
The country's military is holding a phased election over the coming weeks. The nation is holding an election in a vote broadly rejected as a sham, with major political parties banned, many of their leaders imprisoned and as much as half of the country unlikely to vote because of an ongoing internal conflict. A Staggered Vote Amid Conflict The ruling junta is conducting a phased ballot nearly five years after it seized power in a coup, which ignited widespread opposition and spiralled into a civil war. Analysts note the junta, with backing from Beijing, is attempting to validate and consolidate its power as it seeks a way out of the devastating deadlock. "There are no conditions for the practice of the rights of free speech, association or peaceful assembly," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said. More than 200 people have been prosecuted for interfering with or opposing the election under a recently enacted legislation which imposes severe punishments, including the death penalty. Director Mike Tee, performer Kyaw Win Htut and entertainer Ohn Daing were among the prominent figures 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 endorsing the elections. Immense Challenges and Pressure Civilians are "facing pressure from all sides," Mr Türk noted in a comment, pointing out that resistance forces have made warnings asking people to shun the polls. The military has been engaged on several fronts, against both pro-democracy fighters who oppose the coup, as well as ethnic armies which have their own militias. It lost control of vast areas of the country in a string of defeats, but clawed back territory this year after relentless airstrikes made possible through 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 conducting an election. A Restricted Poll The ballot is set to take place in three rounds over the next month in two hundred and seventy-four of the country's three hundred and thirty townships, with the remainder deemed too unstable. Outcomes are expected by late January. There is unlikely 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 difficult to forecast a possible turnout. Six parties, including the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party, are fielding candidates nationwide, while another 51 parties and independent candidates will contest only at the local levels. Some 40 parties, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which scored decisive wins in 2015 and 2020, have been banned. Suu Kyi and many of the party's key leaders have been imprisoned under charges widely condemned as fabricated, while the rest are in exile. International Condemnation "By splitting the vote into stages, the junta 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 United Kingdom and the EU legislature, have dismissed the vote as a sham, while regional bloc Asean has urged negotiations to come before any election. The Myanmar regime has rejected condemnation of the polls, maintaining that it aims to "return [the country] to a multi-party democratic system". "This vote is being held for our nation. It is being held for the people of Myanmar. It is not intended for the outside world," 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 "progress toward democracy".