UN Expert Slams Myanmar Election Plans as ‘Fraudulent Ploy’

[geovalin]

Junta preparing elections, here in Shan state. The Irrawaddy

 

 

A United Nations expert has denounced Myanmar’s planned elections as a cynical attempt by the ruling junta to mask repression with a veneer of legitimacy, calling on the international community to reject the vote as a “fraud”.

 

Tom Andrews, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, said on Wednesday that any election held under the current military regime would be fundamentally illegitimate. Speaking in Geneva, he dismissed the junta’s stated aim of delivering a “free and fair multi-party democracy” as a “mirage”.

 

“You cannot have an election when you imprison, torture and execute your opponents,” Andrews said. “When it’s illegal to speak out, to report the truth, or to criticise those in power — that’s not democracy. That’s a dictatorship in disguise.”

 

Myanmar has been mired in violent turmoil since the army, led by Min Aung Hlaing, overthrew the elected government of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021. The coup triggered a nationwide uprising and civil war, with resistance forces and ethnic militias battling military rule ever since.

 

Despite its promises of a future vote, the junta has maintained a brutal grip on power. Over 6,800 civilians have been killed and more than 22,000 political prisoners remain in detention, according to UN figures. Suu Kyi herself has been jailed on what rights groups call bogus charges, serving a 27-year sentence.

 

Andrews warned that the planned elections, possibly slated for late 2025 or early 2026, are not about restoring democracy but “finding an exit ramp to international pressure”.

 

With Myanmar under heavy sanctions, the junta has become increasingly reliant on China and Russia, both politically and militarily. Min Aung Hlaing is already under multiple global sanctions and faces a possible arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court for alleged crimes against humanity.

 

The message from Andrews was clear: “It’s really important that countries reject this idea of an election,” he said, “and not allow the military junta to get away with this fraud.”

 

As long as free speech is silenced, opposition crushed, and truth criminalised, Myanmar’s elections will remain not a turning point — but a dangerous illusion.

 

-2025-06-27