Rangoon, Oct 29: Political parties in military-run Myanmar began campaigning on Tuesday for national elections scheduled for December 28, a vote widely viewed as an attempt by the junta to legitimize its 2021 coup.The election is expected to be marred by conflict, with large parts of the country under control of resistance forces and voting impossible in many areas.
Campaigning began a day after UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned Southeast Asian leaders that the polls could worsen Myanmar’s instability and deepen its political crisis.
Critics say the elections will neither be free nor fair, given the exclusion of major opposition groups and ongoing civil war.
Fifty-seven parties have registered, but Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) — which won landslide victories in 2015 and 2020 before being ousted by the military — was dissolved two years ago after refusing to take part in what it called a “sham” process.
The military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) launched its campaign in Naypyitaw and Yangon under the slogan “Stronger Myanmar.”
Led by senior ex-generals including party chairman Khin Yi, the USDP pledged to follow the law and claimed the election would restore legitimacy.
The party is fielding more than 1,000 candidates and is expected to dominate in the absence of credible opposition.
While the USDP held large rallies, most smaller parties have turned to social media for outreach. State media will air nightly broadcasts from all registered parties through late November.
Senior Gen.
Min Aung Hlaing, head of the military government, said voting will occur in phases across 202 of the country’s 330 townships due to ongoing fighting.
Armed resistance groups have vowed to disrupt the polls, while the General Strike Coordination Body, which leads anti-junta protests, has called for a nationwide election boycott through the end of the year.
The military seized power in February 2021 after alleging fraud in the 2020 election — claims never substantiated.
The coup sparked a fierce nationwide rebellion, with the junta increasingly relying on airstrikes and heavy assaults to reclaim opposition-held territories, leading to mounting civilian casualties as the country heads toward a widely discredited vote.