Editorial
Myanmar election
Win for the Junta, loss for democracy and people
For the first time in twenty years the hint of democratisation in Myanmar was lost in the stage-managed election scripted by the military junta. Given the very monolithic structure of the government the fact that no fewer than 37 parties had contested the polls with about 3,000 candidates is impressive, but two-thirds of them were running for junta-linked parties.
Reportedly, 1.5 million ethnic voters were disenfranchised because those ethnic areas were deemed too dangerous for voting to be conducted. And the turnout was low, and many of those suspected to be anti-junta were either kept away from casting their votes or forced to vote for the USDP one of the two pro-military parties.
The full results are not yet out but, given the manner the election was conducted and with the help of the pro-military parties whose participation was orchestrated in support of the junta, the result is a foregone conclusion.
The general consensus among foreign analysts is that the election was a sham at best, it being neither fair nor free. No foreign media or observers were allowed to cover the election. And in the absence of oversight mechanism it is difficult to gauge the depth of the irregularities in the election. It is a pity that the rulers in Yangon failed to seize the opportunity to remove the divide between it and the people.
It seems that the formal institutionalization of military rule in Myanmar has been all but completed through this election. It is very evident that the activities of the government in Yangon leading up to the election, from as far back as 2008 when a new constitution was enacted with suitable provisos to fulfill the military's long term objectives, were geared to meet that particular aim. And any prospect of the people of Myanmar enjoying the benefits of democracy through a free and fair election held openly and transparently in the near future has all but vanished. What the country will very likely end up with is a command democracy
What has gone on in Myanmar over the last 20 years, the rejection of the people's choice in 1990, and the attempt to perpetuate military dictatorship through this election, augurs badly for the democracy loving people of Myanmar. It is a travesty that in today's world we have an entire nation disenfranchised, divested of their right to chose their representatives and to be governed by parties of their choice. Regrettably, neither Myanmar's immediate neighbours nor the ASEAN countries have been able to do much to convince the military rulers in Yangon to return power to where it belongs the people. However, notwithstanding the negativities we would like to share the optimists' view that in the dark cloud there is yet a silver lining and that this will be the start of the process of democratisation in Myanmar, albeit slowly.
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