The head of Myanmar’s military government has said the country will keep a federal election in December 2025 or January 2026.
General Min Aung Hlaing said the elections would become “free and good”- adding that 53 social parties had previously submitted their lists to join.
It would be the first ballot since his military junta seized power in a 2021 revolt, arresting and imprisoning democratically elected leader Aung San Sung Kyi and making baseless claims of fraud in the previous year’s votes.
Since then, the region has been in tumult, with a rally action against the junta turning into an armed revolt across the country.
Detractors have described the statement as a fake designed to maintain the regime’s power through surrogate political parties.
Human Rights Watch, an NGO, told the BBC:” The coup is insane if they think an election under the present situation may be considered electronically reliable.
” As a prelude to elections, they need to stop the violence, launch all those haphazardly detained, and let all political parties to enroll and participate instead of dissolving criticism parties.”
The military junta has carried out a violent crackdown on dissent since taking power, executing democracy activists and imprisoning journalists.
But it has struggled to contain a popular rebellion involving pro-democracy and cultural insurgent groups, and has limited power outside major cities.
The UN, citing the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners ( AAPP ), said in January that at least 6, 231 civilians have been killed by the military, including 1, 144 women and 709 children, over the past four years.
It warned in September that Myanmar was” sinking into an depths of mortal suffering”.