Conflict-ravaged Myanmar Votes in Broadly Condemned 'Sham' Election.
The nation is holding an election in a electoral process widely dismissed as a sham, with major political parties dissolved, numerous figures jailed and a significant portion of the country unable to participate because of an continuing internal conflict.
A Phased Ballot Amid War
The military government is conducting a phased ballot nearly five years after it seized power in a takeover, which ignited widespread opposition and spiralled into a civil war.
Observers say the junta, with China's support, is attempting to validate and entrench its power as it looks for a way out of the devastating stalemate.
"There are no conditions for the practice of the rights of free speech, association or peaceful assembly," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said.
More than 200 people have been charged for interfering with or criticising the polls under a new law which imposes harsh penalties, including the possibility of execution.
Film director Mike Tee, performer Kyaw Win Htut and comedian Ohn Daing were among the well-known individuals found guilty under the law, which was passed in July. They were each given a prison sentence of seven years after speaking out against a film promoting the elections.
Logistical Nightmare and Pressure
Civilians are "facing pressure from all sides," Mr Türk noted in a comment, pointing out that resistance forces have issued their own threats asking people to boycott the polls.
The military has been engaged on several fronts, against both pro-democracy fighters who reject the coup, as well as ethnic armed organisations which have their own forces. It lost control of vast areas of the country in a string of defeats, but regained 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 opposition control presents a massive logistical challenge for conducting an election.
A Restricted Poll
Voting is set to take place in three rounds over the next month in 274 of the country's 330 townships, with the rest deemed too unstable. Results are expected around the end of January.
There is not expected to be any voting in up to fifty percent of the country. Even in the townships that are voting, not all constituencies will go to the polls, making it challenging to forecast a likely turnout.
A handful of 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 state or regional levels.
Some 40 parties, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which achieved decisive wins in 2015 and 2020, have been banned. Suu Kyi and a number of the party's senior figures have been imprisoned under charges widely condemned as politically motivated, while others are in hiding abroad.
International Condemnation
"Through dividing the vote into phases, the junta can change their approach if the outcomes in the initial round do not go their way," commented Htin Kyaw Aye, a representative of the watchdog group Spring Sprouts.
Western governments, including the UK and the European Parliament, have rejected the vote as a sham, while regional bloc Asean has urged political dialogue to precede any election.
The Burmese junta has rejected condemnation of the polls, maintaining that it aims to "restore a democracy with multiple parties".
"This vote is being held for Myanmar. It is being held for the people of this country. It is not intended for the international community," a military representative stated at a briefing last week.
Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing cautioned earlier this week that those who choose not to participate are rejecting "the path to democracy".