War-torn Burma Votes in Broadly Condemned 'Sham' Election.
The nation is holding an election in a vote broadly rejected as a farce, with major political parties banned, many of their leaders imprisoned and a significant portion of the country unable to participate because of an ongoing internal conflict.
A Phased Ballot Amid Conflict
The ruling junta is holding a staggered election nearly five years after it seized power in a takeover, which sparked massive protests and spiralled into a devastating conflict.
Analysts note 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.
"The environment does not allow for the exercise of the rights of free speech, assembly or peaceful protest," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said.
Over two hundred people have been charged for interfering with or criticising the polls under a new law which imposes severe punishments, including the possibility of execution.
Director Mike Tee, performer Kyaw Win Htut and comedian Ohn Daing were among the prominent figures convicted under the law, which was enacted in July. They were each handed a prison sentence of seven years after speaking out against a promotional video promoting the elections.
Logistical Nightmare and Pressure
Civilians are "being coerced from all sides," Mr Türk said in a comment, pointing out that resistance forces have issued their own threats asking people to boycott the polls.
The army has been engaged on multiple battlefields, 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 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 huge logistical challenge 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 remainder deemed not secure enough. Outcomes are expected around the end of January.
There is not expected to be any voting in as much as one half of the country. Even in the townships that are voting, not all constituencies will go to the polls, making it difficult to forecast a possible turnout.
A handful of parties, including the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party, are fielding candidates nationwide, while another 51 parties and independent candidates will compete only at the state or regional levels.
Approximately forty groups, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which scored landslide victories in 2015 and 2020, have been dissolved. Suu Kyi and a number of the party's senior figures have been jailed under charges widely condemned as fabricated, while others are in exile.
Criticism and Rejection
"By splitting the vote into stages, the authorities can change their approach if the outcomes in the initial round do not go their way," noted Htin Kyaw Aye, a spokesman 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 come before any election.
The Myanmar regime has rejected criticism 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 people of Myanmar. It is not intended for the outside world," a military representative told a briefing last week.
Military leader Min Aung Hlaing warned earlier this week that those who refuse to vote are rejecting "progress toward democracy".