Conflict-ravaged Myanmar Votes in Broadly Condemned 'Sham' Election.

The nation is holding an election in a electoral process widely dismissed as a sham, with key opposition groups dissolved, numerous figures imprisoned and a significant portion of the country unlikely to vote because of an continuing civil war.

A Staggered Vote Amid Conflict

The ruling junta is holding a phased ballot nearly five years after it took control in a takeover, which ignited widespread opposition and spiralled into a civil war.

Analysts note the junta, with China's support, is seeking to legitimise and consolidate its power as it seeks a way out of the devastating stalemate.

"The environment does not allow for the practice of the freedoms of freedom of expression, association or peaceful assembly," the United Nations' top human rights official Volker Türk said.

Over two hundred people have been prosecuted for disrupting or criticising the election under a new law which carries harsh penalties, including the death penalty.

Film director Mike Tee, actor Kyaw Win Htut and comedian Ohn Daing were among the well-known individuals found guilty under the law, which was passed in July. They were each given a prison sentence of seven years after criticising a promotional video endorsing the elections.

Logistical Nightmare and Coercion

Civilians are "being coerced from all sides," Mr Türk said in a statement, pointing out that resistance forces have issued their own threats asking people to boycott the polls.

The army has been engaged on several fronts, against both pro-democracy fighters who reject the coup, as well as ethnic armed organisations which have their own forces. It lost control of vast areas of the country in a series of major setbacks, but clawed back territory this year after relentless airstrikes enabled by support from China and Russia.

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

A Restricted Poll

Voting 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 rest deemed not secure enough. Results are expected by late January.

There is not expected to be any voting in as much as one half of the country. Even in the townships that are voting, not all constituencies will hold elections, making it difficult to predict a possible turnout.

A handful of parties, including the junta-supported Union Solidarity and Development Party, are fielding candidates nationwide, while dozens more parties and independent candidates will compete only at the local levels.

Some 40 parties, including Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy, which achieved landslide victories in 2015 and 2020, have been banned. Suu Kyi and a number of the party's senior figures have been imprisoned under charges broadly viewed as fabricated, while the rest are in exile.

International Condemnation

"By splitting the vote into stages, the junta can change their approach if the results in the initial round do not go their way," commented Htin Kyaw Aye, a spokesman of the watchdog group Spring Sprouts.

Nations in the West, including the United Kingdom and the European Parliament, have rejected the vote as a sham, while regional bloc Asean has urged negotiations to precede any election.

The Myanmar regime has dismissed condemnation of the polls, insisting that it aims to "restore a democracy with multiple parties".

"The election is being held for Myanmar. It is being held for the people of Myanmar. It is not intended for the international community," a junta spokesman stated at a briefing last week.

Military leader Min Aung Hlaing cautioned earlier this week that those who choose not to participate are turning their back on "the path to democracy".