War-torn Burma Votes in Widely Criticised Political Theater.
Myanmar is going to the polls in a vote widely dismissed as a sham, with key opposition groups dissolved, numerous figures jailed and a significant portion of the country unable to participate because of an continuing civil war.
A Staggered Vote Amid War
The military government is holding a phased ballot nearly half a decade after it seized power in a takeover, which ignited massive protests and spiralled into a civil war.
Analysts note the junta, with China's support, is seeking to legitimise and entrench its power as it looks for a way out of the costly stalemate.
"The environment does not allow for the practice of the freedoms of freedom of expression, assembly or peaceful assembly," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Tรผrk stated.
Over two hundred people have been prosecuted for disrupting or opposing the polls under a new law which imposes harsh penalties, including the death penalty.
Director Mike Tee, actor Kyaw Win Htut and entertainer Ohn Daing were among the prominent figures convicted under the law, which was passed in July. They were each given a seven-year jail term after criticising a film endorsing the elections.
Logistical Nightmare and Pressure
Civilians are "being coerced from all sides," Mr Tรผrk noted in a comment, adding that resistance forces have issued their own threats urging people to boycott the polls.
The army has been engaged on several fronts, against both pro-democracy fighters who oppose the coup, as well as ethnic armed organisations which have their own militias. It ceded territory of vast areas of the country in a string of defeats, but regained territory this year after sustained aerial bombardment enabled by support from Beijing and Moscow.
All of this and the fact that significant regions of the country are still under opposition control presents a massive logistical challenge for holding an election.
A Restricted Poll
The ballot is set to take place in three rounds over the coming weeks in 274 of the country's 330 townships, with the remainder deemed not secure enough. Outcomes 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 go to the polls, making it challenging to forecast a likely turnout.
Six parties, including the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party, are running nominees nationwide, while another 51 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 scored landslide victories in 2015 and 2020, have been dissolved. 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 phases, the authorities can change their approach if the results in the first phase do not go their way," commented Htin Kyaw Aye, a representative of the election-monitoring group Spring Sprouts.
Western governments, including the UK and the European Parliament, have rejected the vote as a pretence, while neighbouring group Asean has urged political dialogue to precede any election.
The Burmese junta has rejected criticism of the polls, insisting that it aims to "restore a democracy with multiple parties".
"This vote is being held for our nation. It is being held for the people of Myanmar. It is not being held for the international community," a junta spokesman told a briefing last week.
Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing warned earlier this week that those who refuse to vote are turning their back on "progress toward democracy".
