Myanmar elections
April 1, 2012
Millions of voters are going to the polls this Sunday in the southeast Asian nation of Myanmar, in by-elections that are expected to give democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi a seat in parliament for the first time.
The elections are the first that Suu Kyi has contested, as she was under house arrest at the hands of Myanmar's military junta during the past two ballots in 1990 and 2010. Around 6.8 million people are eligible to vote in Sunday's election, in which 48 seats in parliament are up for grabs. Suu Kyi's party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), is fielding 43 candidates in the election.
Although the few dozen contested seats are unlikely to have any major political impact on Myanmar's 1,160 member, three-chamber legislature, the polls are seen by many international observers as a test of the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party's (USDP) commitment to reform.
Road of reform
In 2010, the USDP assumed the reigns of power from Myanmar's long-ruling military junta in elections that were criticized for excluding Suu Kyi's NLD and being neither free nor fair. Although considered a civilian front for the military by many, the USDP surprised the international community by implementing a series of reforms.
President Thein Sein - a retired lieutenant general - has freed political prisoners, signed truces with rebel groups and opened dialogue with Suu Kyi, long a symbol of the repressed opposition in Myanmar. Thein also invited hundreds of journalists and dozens of independent monitors to observe the polls, albeit on short notice.
Complaint of irregularities
Suu Kyi, however, has complained about irregularities during the campaign, including alleged intimidation of candidates and the appearance of deceased people on election rolls.
"I don't think we can consider it a genuinely free and fair election," Suu Kyi told a news conference on Friday. She said the irregularities were "really beyond what is acceptable for a democratic election."
"We are determined to go forward because we think that this is what our people want," Suu Kyi said.
The by-election could also serve as an important bellwether for the next general election in 2015.
"I think this is going to be the decisive one, because the outcome of this election will very much influence what happens in 2015," Suu Kyi said.
slk/pfd (AP, dpa)