War-torn Myanmar Votes in Widely Criticised 'Sham' Election.

Myanmar is going to the polls in a vote widely dismissed as a sham, with major political parties banned, numerous figures jailed and a significant portion of the country unlikely to vote because of an ongoing internal conflict.

A Phased Ballot Amid War

The military government is conducting a phased ballot nearly five years after it seized power in a takeover, which ignited widespread opposition and spiralled into a devastating conflict.

Observers say the military regime, with China's support, is attempting to validate and entrench its power as it seeks a way out of the devastating stalemate.

"There are no conditions for the exercise of the rights of free speech, assembly or peaceful assembly," the United Nations' top human rights official Volker Türk stated.

More than 200 people have been prosecuted for interfering with or opposing the polls under a new law which carries harsh penalties, including the possibility of execution.

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 enacted in July. They were each given a seven-year jail term after criticising a film endorsing the elections.

Logistical Nightmare and Coercion

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

The army has been engaged on multiple battlefields, against both armed resistance groups who reject the coup, as well as ethnic armies which have their own militias. It lost control of vast areas of the country in a string of defeats, but regained territory this year after sustained aerial bombardment made possible through support from China and Russia.

All of this and the fact that significant regions of the country are still under rebel administration presents a huge logistical challenge for holding an election.

A Limited Vote

Voting is set to take place in three phases over the next month in 274 of the country's three hundred and thirty townships, with the rest deemed too unstable. Outcomes are expected around the end of 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 go to the polls, making it challenging to predict a likely turnout.

Six parties, including the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party, are running nominees nationwide, while another 51 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 jailed under charges broadly viewed as fabricated, while the rest are in hiding abroad.

International Condemnation

"Through dividing the vote into stages, the junta can change their approach if the outcomes in the first phase do not go their way," noted Htin Kyaw Aye, a spokesman of the election-monitoring group Spring Sprouts.

Nations in the West, including the UK and the European Parliament, have rejected the vote as a sham, while neighbouring group Asean has urged negotiations to precede any election.

The Burmese junta has rejected condemnation of the polls, insisting that it aims to "restore a multi-party democratic system".

"This vote is being held for our nation. It is being held for the people of Myanmar. It is not intended for the international community," a military representative stated at a briefing last week.

Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing cautioned earlier this week that those who choose not to participate are rejecting "progress toward democracy".