Suu Kyi: Reject ‘Unfair’ Elections
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| An activist from the Free Burma Coalition Philippines holds up a poster during a protest in front of the Burmese embassy in the Philippines. (Photo: Reuters) |
Burma’s detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi has advised people to register their discontent at the upcoming elections, which her disbanded party is boycotting as unfair and undemocratic. Suu Kyi’s call, relayed by her lawyer, is the latest in what amounts to a veiled campaign to boycott the Nov. 7 vote. She has carefully avoided asking voters to take any specific action, evidently to avoid prosecution under broadly defined laws. “The people had clearly voiced their aspirations in the 1990 election, but the government has ignored the results. Now is the opportunity for the public to retaliate for what the government had done in 1990,” lawyer Nyan Win quoted Suu Kyi saying.
USDP To Secure Advance Votes
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| Kyaw Soe, a candidate from the Union Solidarity and Development Party, campaigns in Rangoon. (Photo: Reuters) |
The USDP has discussed five options for securing advance votes from government staff, soldiers and junta-backed civic organizations to ensure their victory in the upcoming elections, according to a USDP township official. The five options included taking advance votes from adults more than 50 years old and from civil service personnel who support the party. Votes would also be sought from families who live in areas where the Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA), the forerunner of the USDP, had paved roads. Finally, the order included taking advance votes from families who are members of government-sponsored civic organizations.
‘Anyone but Them’
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| NDF party members hand out campaign leaflets in Rangoon. (Photo: Getty Images) |
The military regime-sponsored 2010 election in Burma is rapidly approaching. However, millions of voters are yet to hear or see any information related to voting, political parties or democracy. Many people in Burma could not tell you which candidates or parties were running in their township. And even those people familiar with the parties say they don’t know who to vote for. “Anyone but them” is a phrase that has been whispered around the streets and neighborhoods of Rangoon in recent days. By “them” people are referring to the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), which was founded by former military generals, and whose ubiquitous presence is the most evident—if not the only—sign that an election is looming in Burma.
US Hopes Burma’s New Government an Improvement
The Obama administration hopes a new Burmese government formed after the November election will adopt different methods on human rights and restoration of true democracy. “We will watch events as they unfold in Burma and hope that a new government will take a different approach than it has in the past,” State Department spokesman P J Crowley told reporters at a daily news conference. The administration is gearing up to enter into talks with the new government to be formed after an election, which it and the international community say lacks legitimacy. “We’ve expressed our concerns about the upcoming electoral process, which we do not believe will be free or fair,” Crowley said.
Release of 3,000 Prisoners before Election?
The Burmese junta may release about 3,000 prisoners before the upcoming election on Nov.
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