Myanmar to hold general election on November 8

Myanmar yesterday announced November 8 as the date for a historic general election set to be the first contested by Aung San Suu Kyi's opposition in a quarter of a century.

The announcement from the country's election commission fires the starting gun for the much-anticipated poll in the former junta-run nation, which has launched a series of reforms since the end of outright military rule in 2011.

The vote, seen as a crucial test of the country's democratic progress, will determine the elected contingent in the fledgling parliament with a president selected by the legislature later. But Suu Kyi is barred by the constitution from taking the top job.

The Nobel laureate's National League for Democracy (NLD) party did not immediately confirm it would participate in the polls, although it is widely expected to make huge gains at the ballot box.

"We cannot say whether we will take part right now. We need to hold a meeting to make a decision," spokesman Nyan Win told AFP.

The NLD has gone house-to-house in recent days urging people to check official voter lists and raising concerns that those displayed across the country are riddled with inaccuracies. Election officials yesterday conceded that the lists contain errors, blaming technical faults and staff shortages but insisting that there is still time to iron out many of the flaws.

The Union Election Commission said on its website that the parliamentary election would take place on November 8, a Sunday, with candidates given between July 20 and August 8 to register.

For Myanmar's roughly 30 million voters the election presents a rare chance to cast their votes in a nationwide poll contested by the country's main opposition.

With Suu Kyi barred from the top job and no obvious second candidate within the NLD, observers predict the party could end up supporting a presidential candidate outside its ranks.

Experts fear that horsetrading between the election and the announcement of presidential candidates several months later could trigger instability in the nation, where the military has a history of crushing dissent.