🔗 Share this article Conflict-ravaged Myanmar Votes in Widely Criticised Political Theater. Myanmar's military is holding a staggered election over the coming weeks. Myanmar is going to the polls in a vote widely dismissed as a farce, with major political parties dissolved, numerous figures imprisoned and a significant portion of the country unable to participate because of an continuing internal conflict. A Staggered Vote Amid War The military government is holding a phased ballot nearly half a decade after it seized power in a coup, which ignited massive protests and escalated into a civil war. Analysts note the junta, with backing from Beijing, is seeking to legitimise and entrench its power as it looks for a way out of the devastating deadlock. "There are no conditions for the exercise of the rights of freedom of expression, assembly or peaceful protest," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk stated. Over two hundred people have been charged for disrupting or criticising the election under a new law which carries severe punishments, including the death penalty. Director Mike Tee, performer 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 speaking out against a film endorsing the elections. Immense Challenges and Coercion Civilians are "facing pressure from all sides," Mr Türk noted in a statement, adding that armed rebel groups have made warnings asking people to shun the polls. The army has been engaged on several fronts, against both pro-democracy fighters who reject 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 regained territory this year after relentless airstrikes made possible through support from Beijing and Moscow. All of this and the fact that significant regions of the country are still under rebel administration presents a massive operational hurdle for conducting an election. A Limited Vote Voting is set to take place in three rounds over the coming weeks in two hundred and seventy-four of the country's 330 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, some districts will go to the polls, making it challenging 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 contest only at the state or regional levels. Some 40 parties, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which achieved 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 politically motivated, while the rest are in exile. Criticism and Rejection "By splitting the vote into stages, the junta can change their approach if the results in the first phase do not go their way," noted Htin Kyaw Aye, a representative of the watchdog group Spring Sprouts. Western governments, including the United Kingdom and the EU legislature, have rejected the vote as a sham, while regional bloc Asean has called for political dialogue to come before any election. The Burmese junta has rejected condemnation of the polls, maintaining that it aims to "restore a democracy with multiple parties". "This vote is being held for our nation. It is being held for the citizens of this country. It is not intended for the international community," a military representative stated at a news conference last week. Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing cautioned earlier this week that those who refuse to vote are turning their back on "the path to democracy".
Myanmar's military is holding a staggered election over the coming weeks. Myanmar is going to the polls in a vote widely dismissed as a farce, with major political parties dissolved, numerous figures imprisoned and a significant portion of the country unable to participate because of an continuing internal conflict. A Staggered Vote Amid War The military government is holding a phased ballot nearly half a decade after it seized power in a coup, which ignited massive protests and escalated into a civil war. Analysts note the junta, with backing from Beijing, is seeking to legitimise and entrench its power as it looks for a way out of the devastating deadlock. "There are no conditions for the exercise of the rights of freedom of expression, assembly or peaceful protest," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk stated. Over two hundred people have been charged for disrupting or criticising the election under a new law which carries severe punishments, including the death penalty. Director Mike Tee, performer 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 speaking out against a film endorsing the elections. Immense Challenges and Coercion Civilians are "facing pressure from all sides," Mr Türk noted in a statement, adding that armed rebel groups have made warnings asking people to shun the polls. The army has been engaged on several fronts, against both pro-democracy fighters who reject 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 regained territory this year after relentless airstrikes made possible through support from Beijing and Moscow. All of this and the fact that significant regions of the country are still under rebel administration presents a massive operational hurdle for conducting an election. A Limited Vote Voting is set to take place in three rounds over the coming weeks in two hundred and seventy-four of the country's 330 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, some districts will go to the polls, making it challenging 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 contest only at the state or regional levels. Some 40 parties, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which achieved 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 politically motivated, while the rest are in exile. Criticism and Rejection "By splitting the vote into stages, the junta can change their approach if the results in the first phase do not go their way," noted Htin Kyaw Aye, a representative of the watchdog group Spring Sprouts. Western governments, including the United Kingdom and the EU legislature, have rejected the vote as a sham, while regional bloc Asean has called for political dialogue to come before any election. The Burmese junta has rejected condemnation of the polls, maintaining that it aims to "restore a democracy with multiple parties". "This vote is being held for our nation. It is being held for the citizens of this country. It is not intended for the international community," a military representative stated at a news conference last week. Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing cautioned earlier this week that those who refuse to vote are turning their back on "the path to democracy".