đź”— Share this article War-torn Myanmar Votes in Widely Criticised Political Theater. The country's junta is conducting a staggered vote over the next month. The nation is holding an election in a vote widely dismissed as a farce, with major political parties banned, numerous figures imprisoned 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 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 China's support, 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 freedoms of free speech, association or peaceful assembly," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker TĂĽrk stated. Over two hundred people have been prosecuted for disrupting or opposing the polls under a new law which carries severe punishments, including the death penalty. Director Mike Tee, actor 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 seven-year jail term after criticising a promotional video endorsing the elections. Immense Challenges and Pressure Civilians are "being coerced from all sides," Mr TĂĽrk said in a statement, pointing out that resistance forces have made warnings urging people to boycott the polls. The military has been engaged on multiple battlefields, against both pro-democracy fighters who oppose the coup, as well as ethnic armies which have their own militias. It ceded territory of large parts of the country in a string of defeats, but regained territory this year following sustained aerial bombardment 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 conducting an election. A Limited Vote The ballot is set to take place in three rounds over the coming weeks in two hundred and seventy-four of the country's three hundred and thirty townships, with the remainder deemed too unstable. Results 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 challenging to predict a likely turnout. A handful of parties, including the junta-supported Union Solidarity and Development Party, are running nominees nationwide, while dozens more parties and non-aligned contenders will contest only at the local levels. Approximately forty groups, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which scored landslide victories in 2015 and 2020, have been dissolved. Suu Kyi and many of the party's senior figures have been imprisoned under charges broadly viewed as fabricated, while the rest are in hiding abroad. International Condemnation "Through dividing the vote into phases, the authorities can adjust tactics if the outcomes in the initial round do not go their way," noted Htin Kyaw Aye, a spokesman of the watchdog group Spring Sprouts. Nations in the West, including the United Kingdom and the EU legislature, have rejected the vote as a pretence, while neighbouring group Asean has called for negotiations to come before any election. The Burmese junta has dismissed condemnation of the polls, insisting that it aims to "restore a multi-party democratic system". "This vote is being held for our nation. It is being held for the citizens of Myanmar. It is not being held for the international community," a military representative stated at a news conference last week. Military leader Min Aung Hlaing warned earlier this week that those who refuse to vote are rejecting "the path to democracy".
The country's junta is conducting a staggered vote over the next month. The nation is holding an election in a vote widely dismissed as a farce, with major political parties banned, numerous figures imprisoned 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 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 China's support, 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 freedoms of free speech, association or peaceful assembly," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker TĂĽrk stated. Over two hundred people have been prosecuted for disrupting or opposing the polls under a new law which carries severe punishments, including the death penalty. Director Mike Tee, actor 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 seven-year jail term after criticising a promotional video endorsing the elections. Immense Challenges and Pressure Civilians are "being coerced from all sides," Mr TĂĽrk said in a statement, pointing out that resistance forces have made warnings urging people to boycott the polls. The military has been engaged on multiple battlefields, against both pro-democracy fighters who oppose the coup, as well as ethnic armies which have their own militias. It ceded territory of large parts of the country in a string of defeats, but regained territory this year following sustained aerial bombardment 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 conducting an election. A Limited Vote The ballot is set to take place in three rounds over the coming weeks in two hundred and seventy-four of the country's three hundred and thirty townships, with the remainder deemed too unstable. Results 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 challenging to predict a likely turnout. A handful of parties, including the junta-supported Union Solidarity and Development Party, are running nominees nationwide, while dozens more parties and non-aligned contenders will contest only at the local levels. Approximately forty groups, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which scored landslide victories in 2015 and 2020, have been dissolved. Suu Kyi and many of the party's senior figures have been imprisoned under charges broadly viewed as fabricated, while the rest are in hiding abroad. International Condemnation "Through dividing the vote into phases, the authorities can adjust tactics if the outcomes in the initial round do not go their way," noted Htin Kyaw Aye, a spokesman of the watchdog group Spring Sprouts. Nations in the West, including the United Kingdom and the EU legislature, have rejected the vote as a pretence, while neighbouring group Asean has called for negotiations to come before any election. The Burmese junta has dismissed condemnation of the polls, insisting that it aims to "restore a multi-party democratic system". "This vote is being held for our nation. It is being held for the citizens of Myanmar. It is not being held for the international community," a military representative stated at a news conference last week. Military leader Min Aung Hlaing warned earlier this week that those who refuse to vote are rejecting "the path to democracy".