International community urged to reject Myanmar junta’s fake elections

The Myanmar military junta conducted the “first phase” of its sham elections on 28 December – an exercise in misdirection aimed at diverting attention away from its atrocities and gaslighting the international community into gifting the junta the legitimacy it so desperately needs.

Yet in an embarrassment to the junta, voter turnout was dismal, as much of the population boycotted the polls despite the junta’s widespread use of fear and intimidation.

Now is the time for the UN, Asean, Myanmar’s neighbours and the broader international community to outrightly reject the sham elections before the empty performance continues into its slated second and third phases next month.

The junta’s elections fail on every front.

First, they are far from inclusive. The junta’s limited territorial reach covers less than 40% of the country. By its own admission, at least 65 of 330 townships will be excluded entirely from its poll.

Thousands of village tracts and urban wards were also excluded in townships where the junta claimed voting would take place. In these areas outside its control, the junta is ramping up its air strikes to punish and terrorise perceived opponents.

Nor are the sham elections free or fair. According to the Asian Network for Free Elections (Anfrel), Myanmar political parties that won 90% of the seats in the 2020 national election have been de-registered or otherwise barred from participating in the junta’s poll.

At the same time, democratically elected leaders, including President Win Myint and State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, continue to languish in political imprisonment.

Even in areas within the junta’s reach, communities have been pressured to vote, essentially at gunpoint. According to the UN’s human rights office, the junta’s electronic surveillance technology is being used to track how people vote, enabling reprisals. Junta punishments for dissent include extreme sanctions such as the death penalty.

The Special Advisory Council for Myanmar (SAC-M) also rebuffs the suggestion that these ‘elections’ somehow offer a window to democratic transition.

Myanmar was already advancing on its democratic path when Min Aung Hlaing destroyed that promise with his coup attempt. For the past five years, he has deployed the military’s war machine as a tool of repression and annihilation.

Even in the opening hours of its electoral charade, the junta carried out fresh attacks. Junta air strikes and artillery fire began targeting Budalin township in Sagaing region, at around 07:00 local time on 28 December, according to local residents.

On 27 December, the day before election day, at least nine people were killed and more than 10 others were wounded when a junta fighter jet and a helicopter gunship attacked a row of restaurants in nearby Khin-U township, also in Sagaing region, according to reports.

“The idea that junta leader Min Aung Hlaing is a nascent democrat is beyond absurd,” said SAC-M executive director Ben Lee. “His name has become a byword for atrocities – air strikes, torture, sexual violence, even genocide. The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court wants him arrested for alleged crimes against humanity.”

Before this electoral farce extends any further, the international community should shut it down by tightening the screws on the junta and its proxies, and strengthening its commitment to a genuine democratic path in Myanmar.

Asean and the UN, with broader international support, must also recognise and redouble their support to legitimate pro-democracy actors, including the National Unity Government, ethnic organisations and Myanmar civil society. – SAC-M

Support our work by making a donation. Tap to download the QR code below and scan this QR code from Gallery by using TnG e-wallet or most banking apps: