‘People won’t accept a sham election’: Myanmar’s UN envoy on military junta’s planned election

NEW YORK: Myanmar’s military regime has no legal authority, and its plans to seek legitimacy by having a national election is likely “a sham”, said the country’s ambassador to the United Nations (UN) Kyaw Moe Tun. 

A junta-imposed state of emergency expires on Wednesday (Feb 1), after which the Constitution states that authorities must set in motion plans to hold fresh elections.

While a general election has been promised later this year, critics have questioned whether it will be free and fair.

PLANNED ELECTION A LIKELY SHAM

The military has “no kind of legal authority”, said Mr Kyaw Moe Tun in an interview with CNA. 

“They are illegal. They are illegitimate,” he added. “So whatever the election they are going to organise, the people will definitely not accept it. So that is why we always say that this election they are going to organise is a sham election.”

The career diplomat, who had previously served in Indonesia, Singapore, Switzerland and the United States, urged the international community to step up pressure on the military regime and end the violence in the country. 

Two years have passed since Myanmar’s military seized power in a coup and toppled the elected civilian government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, alleging massive fraud during elections won by her party in 2020.

Since then, more than 2,000 pro-democracy civilians have been killed battling the military junta. More than 1.4 million people have also been internally displaced since the coup, according to the UN.

“Killing, arrests, aerial bombings… There are massacres across the country. So we need to stop them,” said Mr Kyaw Moe Tun.

“So we urge the international community to help us. But until now, we have not had any decisive action from the international community in particular. Even though the UN Security Council adopted a resolution, it is very mild.”