Junta’s Illegal Election Will Only Intensify Crisis and Instability
Global and regional responses must be guided by the determination and calls of the Myanmar people, not deceived by the junta’s ploy and a false sense of regional stability. ASEAN and the wider international community must stand in solidarity with the people’s movement: strongly object and denounce the junta’s sham election; and provide political and practical support to the Spring Revolution.
As the coup attempt comes round to its second anniversary and a state of emergency imposed by the illegal Myanmar military junta is soon to be lifted, the junta is ramping up its legwork for sham national elections in a desperate attempt to establish military rule. Such a move must not be misinterpreted as — or, worse, excused for — a path to normalize relationship with the Myanmar military junta. The international community must follow the lead of the Spring Revolution in establishing a federal democratic Myanmar.
The State Administration Council is to repackage itself as an interim civilian body — a ‘transition council’ — to smooth a fake democratic transition. Whichever name it fancies itself, three facts stand: the people of Myanmar already voiced their wishes in the 2020 elections; the military has absolutely no legal authority or capability to hold any election; and any election under current circumstances is bound to dismiss the Myanmar people’s political will and aspirations and deprive the country of democratic rule.
The junta’s illegal election will not resolve the worsening crisis, but rather add more violence and suffering to an already devastating situation. As stated by the Strategic Initiative Forum — a coalition of General Strike Committee, ethnic revolutionary organizations (EROs) along with other civil society organizations set up to establish a federal democratic union — “The ‘election’ will most certainly not bring any stability, peace, justice or equality to Myanmar society.”
But the junta will take any step to clutch at a claim to legitimacy, so the fraud vote is most likely to take place. Only a handful of people who support or align with the military will cast a ballot, and others in areas under the junta’s control will be coerced into doing so under threat of violence. Votes will be casted in the military’s shrinking domains and in limited areas of their allied ethnic militias, and under extremely limited conditions — simply just so the junta can parade “evidence” of a vote.
Every precaution measure is being taken to ensure the vote happens. Local administrations in the junta’s control areas are fielding household registration and lists of voters are being compiled, while candidates’ phone numbers have been recorded. The junta has now closed down the office responsible for issuing and renewing passports to lock people inside the country. Meanwhile, it rages war on Karen State, Sagaing Region and elsewhere in an attempt to bludgeon local resistance into submission.
The junta is crossing fingers that, once the votes appear in its favor, international pressure is eased and the resistance movement is fractured. Playing the same tune as previous military dictators, the junta outlawed its democratic opposition the National League for Democracy, while offering empty promises for constitutional changes to non-Bamar ethnic nationalities.
This time, however, standing alongside the people’s movement, ethnic political parties and the EROs are not playing along with the junta’s game. The Karen National Union has already categorically opposed the bogus vote, as have the Chin National Organisation, the Kachin Independence Organization and the Palaung State Liberation Front. The Arakan League for Democracy, the Karenni National Progressive Party, the Shan National League for Democracy and the Ta’ang National Liberation Army refused to participate in the fraudulent process.
People across regions have taken to the streets to oppose the junta’s illegal election, and revolutionary forces are launching multiple attacks on election personnel. The Tamu Township Election Commission in Sagaing Region was torched, while several blasts sabotaged survey infrastructure in Yangon, Mandalay, Magwe and Sagaing Regions. Youth in Yangon have also handed out leaflets to “fight against illegitimate and sham elections of fascist military.”
All resistance actions are not simply to denounce the planned illegal election. It is also to remind the world that the Myanmar people had already given their votes in the 2020 elections, which was blatantly disrespected by the military.
To the international community, feigning elections may seem like a convenient pretext to establish relative stability in the region and return to business-as-usual. But it must not fall into this trap. The resistance and defiance of the Myanmar people in the past 24 months should already be enough to convince the world that this is an incorrect, unethical approach to take. If not, the protest from the Mandalay Strike Committee should do the trick: “Let’s oppose the election, lest we fall under the boots of the military again.”
Global and regional responses must be guided by the determination and calls of the Myanmar people, not deceived by the junta’s ploy and a false sense of regional stability. ASEAN and the wider international community must stand in solidarity with the people’s movement: strongly object and denounce the junta’s sham election; and provide political and practical support to the Spring Revolution. As the Indonesian Investment Minister has aptly put: “Let someone else who is qualified manage this country.”
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[1] One year following the 1988 pro-democracy uprising, the former military junta changed the country’s name from Burma to Myanmar overnight. Progressive Voice uses the term ‘Myanmar’ in acknowledgement that most people of the country use this term. However, the deception of inclusiveness and the historical process of coercion by the former State Peace and Development Council military regime into usage of ‘Myanmar’ rather than ‘Burma’ without the consent of the people is recognized and not forgotten. Thus, under certain circumstances, ‘Burma’ is used.
Resources from the past week
Statements and Press Releases
Statement of condemnation of the recent aerial attacks on the civilian population
By Karen Human Rights Group
By National Unity Government (Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
E-Police Station ဖွဲ့စည်းခြင်း
By National Unity Government (Ministry of Home Affairs and Immigration)
Lunar New Year Greetings from Foreign Minister H.E Daw Zin Mar Aung
By National Unity Government (Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
By Shan Human Rights Foundation
New SAC-M Report: Supplying the Myanmar Military’s Weapon Production
By Special Advisory Council for Myanmar
Reports
Attacks on Health Care in Myanmar (28 December 2022 – 10 January 2023)
By Insecurity Insight
Myanmar’s Life-and-Death Situation: A Concern for UN Member States – Issue 88
By Myanmar Peace Monitor
Buddhist monk and a teacher found dead in Monastery basement
By Myanmar Witness
Rohingya villages a battleground for military clashes
By Myanmar Witness
Fatal Business: Supplying the Myanmar Military’s Weapon Production
By Special Advisory Council for Myanmar
Progressive Voice is a participatory, rights-based policy research and advocacy organization that was born out of Burma Partnership. Burma Partnership officially ended its work on October 10, 2016 transitioning to a rights-based policy research and advocacy organization called Progressive Voice. For further information, please see our press release “Burma Partnership Celebrates Continuing Regional Solidarity for Burma and Embraces the Work Ahead for Progressive Voice.”
