Conflict-ravaged Burma Goes to the Polls in Broadly Condemned 'Sham' Election.

The nation is holding an election in a vote widely dismissed as a farce, with major political parties dissolved, many of their leaders imprisoned and as much as half of the country unlikely to vote because of an continuing internal conflict.

A Staggered Vote Amid War

The military government is conducting a staggered election nearly half a decade after it seized power in a coup, which ignited massive protests and escalated into a devastating conflict.

Observers say the military regime, with backing from Beijing, is seeking to legitimise and entrench its power as it seeks a way out of the costly stalemate.

"The environment does not allow for the practice of the freedoms of free speech, association or peaceful protest," the United Nations' top human rights official Volker Türk stated.

More than 200 people have been prosecuted for interfering with or opposing the election under a new law which imposes severe punishments, including the possibility of execution.

Film director Mike Tee, performer Kyaw Win Htut and comedian Ohn Daing were among the well-known individuals convicted under the law, which was passed in July. They were each handed a seven-year jail term after criticising a promotional video promoting the elections.

Logistical Nightmare and Pressure

Civilians are "facing pressure from all sides," Mr Türk noted in a comment, pointing out that armed rebel groups have made warnings asking people to boycott the polls.

The military has been engaged on multiple battlefields, against both pro-democracy fighters who oppose the coup, as well as ethnic armed organisations which have their own forces. It lost control of large parts of the country in a series of major setbacks, but regained territory this year after relentless airstrikes made possible through support from Beijing and Moscow.

All of this and the fact that significant regions of the country are still under opposition control presents a massive operational hurdle for holding an election.

A Restricted Poll

The ballot is set to take place in three rounds over the next month in 274 of the country's three hundred and thirty townships, with the remainder deemed too unstable. 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 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 local levels.

Approximately forty groups, 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 jailed under charges widely condemned as politically motivated, while others are in hiding abroad.

International Condemnation

"By splitting the vote into phases, the authorities can adjust tactics if the outcomes in the initial round do not go their way," commented Htin Kyaw Aye, a spokesman of the watchdog group Spring Sprouts.

Western governments, including the UK and the EU legislature, have rejected the vote as a pretence, while regional bloc Asean has called for political dialogue to come before any election.

The Myanmar regime has dismissed criticism of the polls, insisting that it aims to "return [the country] to a democracy with multiple parties".

"The election is being held for Myanmar. It is being held for the citizens of Myanmar. It is not intended for the outside world," a junta spokesman stated at a briefing last week.

Military leader Min Aung Hlaing cautioned earlier this week that those who refuse to vote are turning their back on "progress toward democracy".