War-torn Burma Goes to the Polls in Broadly Condemned 'Sham' Election.
The nation is holding an election in a electoral process widely dismissed as a sham, with key opposition groups banned, numerous figures imprisoned and as much as half of the country unlikely to vote because of an ongoing internal conflict.
A Phased Ballot Amid Conflict
The military government is holding a staggered election nearly half a decade after it seized power in a coup, which ignited widespread opposition and spiralled into a devastating conflict.
Observers say the military regime, 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 practice of the freedoms of freedom of expression, association or peaceful protest," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk stated.
More than 200 people have been charged for interfering with or criticising the election under a recently enacted legislation which imposes harsh penalties, including the death penalty.
Film director Mike Tee, actor Kyaw Win Htut and entertainer Ohn Daing were among the well-known individuals convicted under the law, which was enacted in July. They were each given a seven-year jail term after speaking out against a promotional video endorsing the elections.
Logistical Nightmare and Pressure
Civilians are "being coerced from all sides," Mr Türk said in a statement, pointing out that armed rebel groups have issued their own threats asking people to boycott the polls.
The military has been fighting on several fronts, against both pro-democracy fighters who oppose the coup, as well as ethnic armed organisations which have their own forces. It lost control of large parts of the country in a string of defeats, but clawed back territory this year after sustained aerial bombardment made possible through support from Beijing and Moscow.
All of this and the fact that large parts of the country are still under rebel administration presents a huge logistical challenge for conducting an election.
A Limited Vote
Voting is set to take place in three rounds over the next month in 274 of the country's 330 townships, with the remainder deemed not secure enough. Results are expected around the end of 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 hold elections, making it challenging to predict a likely turnout.
Six parties, including the junta-supported Union Solidarity and Development Party, are fielding candidates nationwide, while dozens more parties and non-aligned contenders will compete only at the local levels.
Approximately forty groups, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which achieved landslide victories in 2015 and 2020, have been banned. Suu Kyi and many of the party's key leaders have been imprisoned under charges broadly viewed as politically motivated, while others are in exile.
International Condemnation
"By splitting the vote into stages, the authorities can change their approach if the results in the initial round do not go their way," commented Htin Kyaw Aye, a spokesman of the watchdog group Spring Sprouts.
Western governments, including the UK and the EU legislature, have rejected the vote as a pretence, while regional bloc Asean has urged negotiations to precede any election.
The Burmese junta has dismissed condemnation of the polls, insisting that it aims to "restore a democracy with multiple parties".
"The election 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 junta spokesman stated at a briefing last week.
Military leader Min Aung Hlaing warned earlier this week that those who refuse to vote are turning their back on "the path to democracy".