Five years after the military coup in Myanmar leaves the military junta ruling in the Southeast Asian country a parliamentary election for the first time hold off. The first round of the election began on Sunday morning (local time), with two further rounds planned for January 11th and 25th. Results are not expected to be known until the end of January.
The last parliamentary election to date Myanmar took place at the end of 2020. A few months later, the army staged a coup in February 2021 and removed the de facto head of government Aung San Suu Kyi from power. The elections originally promised by the putschists have since been postponed several times on the grounds that the violence in the country does not allow this.
Opponents of the military junta speak of a “sham election”
Critics of the junta describe the vote now being held as a “sham election” in which the generals around their boss Min Aung Hlaing wanted to legitimize their power. The junta has introduced strict electoral laws: registration is made more difficult for opposition parties and individuals are barred from running for office.
Aung San Suu Kyi The NLD (National League for Democracy) party, which won the 2020 election with a large majority, is excluded from this year’s vote. The ousted head of government is still in custody – where exactly is unknown. In the run-up to the election, according to local media, around 90 people who had expressed doubts about the legality of the election were detained by the beginning of November alone.
Half of the country is controlled by rebels
An election victory for the USDP party, which… Military supported, is therefore considered safe. In addition, voting takes place mainly in areas controlled by the junta. Even outside of the restrictions imposed by electoral laws, the election is of the situation in the country burdened: About 50 percent of Myanmar is controlled by resistance groups. Because of ongoing fighting It is therefore not possible to hold elections in many places in the country. In total, elections will take place in 265 of 330 electoral districts.
To make the election possible, the junta is relying on organizational help from Russia and China, among others. Both countries are the Main suppliers of weapons to the military government. China in particular provided extensive technical assistance in advance. For the first time, more than 50,000 counting machines are to be used in Myanmar, which, according to the electoral commission set up by the junta, are intended to prevent fraud – but according to critics, they could even enable manipulation.
