War-torn Myanmar Goes to the Polls in Widely Criticised 'Sham' Election.
Myanmar is going to the polls in a electoral process widely dismissed as a sham, with major political parties dissolved, numerous figures jailed and as much as half of the country unlikely to vote because of an continuing internal conflict.
A Phased Ballot Amid War
The military government is holding a staggered election nearly five years after it seized power in a coup, which ignited widespread opposition and escalated into a devastating conflict.
Observers say the military regime, with backing from Beijing, is attempting to validate and entrench its power as it looks for a way out of the devastating stalemate.
"There are no conditions for the exercise of the rights of freedom of expression, association or peaceful protest," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker TĂĽrk said.
More than 200 people have been prosecuted for interfering with or opposing the polls under a new law which imposes severe punishments, including the possibility of execution.
Film director Mike Tee, performer Kyaw Win Htut and comedian Ohn Daing were among the prominent figures convicted under the law, which was passed 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 "facing pressure from all sides," Mr TĂĽrk said in a statement, adding that resistance forces have issued their own threats urging people to shun the polls.
The military 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 lost control of large parts of the country in a series of major setbacks, but regained territory this year following sustained aerial bombardment enabled by support from China and Russia.
All of this and the fact that large parts of the country are still under rebel administration presents a massive operational hurdle for conducting an election.
A Limited Vote
The ballot is set to take place in three phases over the coming weeks in 274 of the country's 330 townships, with the rest deemed too unstable. 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 difficult to predict a possible turnout.
A handful of parties, including the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party, are fielding candidates nationwide, while dozens more 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 decisive wins in 2015 and 2020, have been dissolved. Suu Kyi and many of the party's key leaders have been imprisoned under charges widely condemned as fabricated, while the rest are in hiding abroad.
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 spokesman of the election-monitoring group Spring Sprouts.
Western governments, including the UK and the European Parliament, have rejected the vote as a sham, while neighbouring group Asean has called for negotiations to come before any election.
The Burmese junta has dismissed criticism 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 intended for the outside world," a military representative stated at a news conference last week.
Military leader Min Aung Hlaing warned earlier this week that those who choose not to participate are rejecting "the path to democracy".