Myanmar (also known as Burma and Brahmadesh) may go for a nationwide election in the next few months, where the military rulers claim it to be a free & fair electoral exercise for the benefit of 55 million primarily Buddhist nationals in the southeast Asian country. Myanmar junta chief Min Aung Hlaing on a number of occasions stated that the next general election will be conducted by the end of this year or the early days of 2026. In a recent announcement, published by the state-sponsored newspaper Global New Light of Myanmar, the election authority reaffirmed its plan to hold the election soon. The Union Election Commission (UEC) also disclosed that initial preparations were already made for the polls, where the electronic voting machines will be used for a quick, accurate and transparent outcome. The current batch of dictators, who grabbed power in Naypyitaw on 01 February 2021 after toppling the democratically elected government of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, continues to rule the country under the State Administration Council. It’s however assumed that Suu Kyi and her party National League for Democracy (NLD) will be prevented from participating in the planned election.
But the problem with the military junta, it hardly controls the entire country to conduct inclusive polls. According to the National Unity Government of Myanmar, an exile administration formed by elected Parliamentarians after the 2021 military coup, over 75% of Myanmar territory is now under the control of civilian administrations after being snatched away by anti-junta forces. Over 144 out of 330 Myanmar townships are currently controlled by the ethnic armed organizations and other resistance forces, where 79 townships continue to face offensives from the resistance forces. Since the last military coup, over 5350 Myanmar locals have lost their lives to the aggression of security forces and more than 2.9 million individuals were displaced. No less than 26,000 people were detained by the armed forces, where the ousted Myanmar President Win Myint, Nobel laureate Suu Kyi and over 25 journalists are still behind the bars.
Meanwhile, the anti-junta and pro-democracy groups have come out with strong voices that the military junta has no legal or political legitimacy to hold an election. Progressive Voice, a rights-based advocacy group termed the junta’s planned polls as a sham election. The junta’s recent arbitrary dissolution of 40 political parties (including the NLD) makes its real intention crystal clear, stated the group, adding that the election authority recently stated that voting will take place only in 267 townships (out of officially recognized 330 across Myanmar). It also appealed to the international community to unequivocally denounce the junta’s planned election and support the Myanmar people’s efforts to build federal democracy, adding that any international support of the sham election plan will only serve the junta to continue its brutality and vicious cycle of violence. Even the Association of Southeast Asian Nations remains divided over the junta’s announced polls. The military drafted 2008 Constitution of Myanmar ensures 25 percent of the Parliamentary seats to them. So the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party, which is registered with the election authority along with 50 other political parties, can get an advantage on various crucial issues, even with the junta’s continued inhuman activities.
India has a clear view on the Myanmar polls, the electoral process should be trustworthy. While meeting the junta chief in the BIMSTEC Bangkok summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi emphasized on restoring the democratic process in the neighbouring country with credible and inclusive polls. Mentioning about the human cost of the ongoing ethnic violence in Myanmar, PM Modi underlined that there is no military solution to the conflict. The saffron leader stressed that enduring peace could only be achieved through an inclusive dialogue. Needless to mention that, the turbulence in Myanmar has negatively impacted the bordering localities with a huge influx of refugees and asylum seekers from the poverty stricken country that even complicated the internal security of Manipur. Nothing specific can be expected from the electoral preparations in Myanmar and probably neighbours India and Bangladesh need to carefully wait & watch for the time being.
