Myanmar is tomorrow to hold the first phase of a general election, its first vote in five years and an exercise that critics said would neither restore the country’s fragile democracy undone by a 2021 army takeover, nor end a devastating civil war triggered by the nation’s harsh military rule.
The military has framed the polls as a return to multi-party democracy, likely seeking to add a facade of legitimacy to its rule, which began after the army four years ago ousted the elected government of former leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
The takeover triggered widespread popular opposition that has grown into a civil war, and the the fighting has complicated holding the polls in many contested areas.
Photo: AP
Voting is to be held in different parts of the country in three phases, with the second on Jan. 11 and the third on Jan. 25 next year.
Human rights and opposition groups said the vote would be neither free nor fair and that power is likely to remain in the hands of military leader Myanmar junta chief Min Aung Hlaing.
International Crisis Group analyst Richard Horsey said that the vote is being run by the same military that was behind the 2021 coup.
“These elections are not credible at all,” he said. “They do not include any of the political parties that did well in the last election or the election before.”
The military’s strategy is for its favored Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) to win in a landslide, shifting Myanmar from direct military rule to a government with a “civilian veneer” that perpetuates army control, Horsey said.
That would allow the military to claim that holding the election showed progress toward inclusiveness, in the spirit of a peace proposal by the ASEAN, which called for “constructive dialogue among all parties concerned” so they can “seek a peaceful solution in the interests of the people.”
It would also provide an excuse for neighbors such as China, India and Thailand to continue their support, which they contend promotes stability in Myanmar.
Western nations have maintained sanctions against Myanmar’s ruling generals, because of their anti-democratic actions and brutal war on their opponents.
Myanmar’s 80-year-old Suu Kyi and her party are not taking part in the election. Other parties are also boycotting the vote or have declined to run under conditions they said are unfair. Opposition groups have also called for a boycott by voters.
Asian Network for Free Elections analyst Amael Vier said Myanmar’s political parties that won 90 percent of the seats in 2020 no longer exist today.
An Election Protection Law with harsh penalties enacted this year put even more restrictions on political activity, effectively barring all public criticism of the polls. More than 200 people have been charged for leafleting or online activity over the past few months.
All this likely sets the stage for the military-backed USDP to dominate the polls, and for 69-year-old Min Aung Hlaing to take over as president.
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