Conflict-ravaged Burma Goes to the Polls in Widely Criticised Political Theater.
Myanmar is going to the polls in a electoral process broadly rejected as a sham, with major political parties banned, numerous figures jailed and as much as half of the country unable to participate because of an continuing internal conflict.
A Phased Ballot Amid Conflict
The ruling junta is conducting a staggered election nearly half a decade after it seized power in a takeover, which sparked widespread opposition and escalated into a devastating conflict.
Observers say the military regime, 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 practice of the freedoms of freedom of expression, association or peaceful protest," the United Nations' top human rights official Volker Türk said.
Over two hundred people have been prosecuted for interfering with or opposing the polls under a recently enacted legislation which carries harsh penalties, including the death penalty.
Director Mike Tee, actor Kyaw Win Htut and entertainer Ohn Daing were among the well-known individuals found guilty under the law, which was passed in July. They were each handed a prison sentence of seven years after criticising a promotional video endorsing the elections.
Logistical Nightmare and Coercion
Civilians are "being coerced from all sides," Mr Türk said in a comment, adding that armed rebel groups have made warnings urging 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 string of defeats, but clawed back territory this year after sustained aerial bombardment made possible through support from China and Russia.
All of this and the fact that large parts of the country are still under rebel administration presents a huge operational hurdle for conducting an election.
A Restricted Poll
The ballot is set to take place in three phases 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 as much as one half of the country. Even in the townships that are voting, not all constituencies will hold elections, making it challenging to predict a possible turnout.
A handful of parties, including the junta-supported Union Solidarity and Development Party, are running nominees 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 decisive wins in 2015 and 2020, have been dissolved. Suu Kyi and a number of the party's key leaders have been jailed under charges widely condemned as fabricated, while others are in hiding abroad.
Criticism and Rejection
"By splitting the vote into phases, the junta can adjust tactics if the outcomes in the initial round 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 called for political dialogue to come before any election.
The Burmese junta has dismissed criticism of the polls, maintaining that it aims to "restore a democracy with multiple parties".
"The election is being held for Myanmar. It is being held for the citizens of Myanmar. It is not being held for the outside world," a military representative stated at a news conference last week.
Military leader Min Aung Hlaing warned earlier this week that those who choose not to participate are turning their back on "progress toward democracy".