Conflict-ravaged Myanmar Goes to the Polls in Widely Criticised 'Sham' Election.
Myanmar is going to the polls in a electoral process broadly rejected as a farce, with key opposition groups dissolved, numerous figures imprisoned and a significant portion of the country unable to participate because of an continuing civil war.
A Phased Ballot Amid Conflict
The military government is holding a phased ballot nearly half a decade after it seized power in a coup, which ignited widespread opposition and spiralled into a civil war.
Observers say the junta, with backing from Beijing, is seeking to legitimise and consolidate its power as it looks for a way out of the devastating deadlock.
"The environment does not allow for the exercise of the freedoms 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 interfering with or opposing the election under a recently enacted legislation which imposes severe punishments, including the death penalty.
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 enacted in July. They were each given a seven-year jail term after speaking out against a promotional video promoting the elections.
Logistical Nightmare and Coercion
Civilians are "being coerced from all sides," Mr Türk noted in a comment, 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 armed organisations which have their own forces. It lost control of vast areas of the country in a series of major setbacks, but regained territory this year after sustained aerial bombardment enabled by support from Beijing and Moscow.
All of this and the fact that large parts of the country are still under rebel administration presents a massive logistical challenge for holding an election.
A Limited Vote
Voting is set to take place in three phases over the next month in two hundred and seventy-four of the country's 330 townships, with the rest deemed too unstable. Results are expected by late January.
There is unlikely to be any voting in up to fifty percent of the country. Even in the townships that are voting, some districts will go to the polls, making it difficult to forecast a likely turnout.
A handful of parties, including the junta-supported Union Solidarity and Development Party, are running nominees nationwide, while another 51 parties and non-aligned contenders will compete only at the state or regional levels.
Some 40 parties, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which scored landslide victories in 2015 and 2020, have been banned. Suu Kyi and many of the party's senior figures have been imprisoned under charges widely condemned as politically motivated, while the rest are in exile.
International Condemnation
"Through dividing the vote into phases, the junta can adjust tactics if the results in the initial round do not go their way," noted Htin Kyaw Aye, a representative of the watchdog group Spring Sprouts.
Western governments, including the UK and the European Parliament, have dismissed the vote as a pretence, while neighbouring group Asean has urged negotiations to precede any election.
The Myanmar regime has dismissed condemnation of the polls, insisting that it aims to "return [the country] to a democracy with multiple parties".
"This vote is being held for Myanmar. It is being held for the citizens of Myanmar. It is not being held for the outside world," a junta spokesman told a briefing last week.
Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing cautioned earlier this week that those who choose not to participate are rejecting "the path to democracy".