Myanmar to hold second phase of election in January
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Myanmar’s officials with election-related equipment in September 2025. The second phase of its election will be held two weeks after the first phase on Dec 28.
PHOTO: AFP
YANGON – Myanmar’s military government will hold the second phase of its multi-stage election on Jan 11, the state media said on Oct 29, a vote dismissed as a sham by Western countries, the United Nations and human rights groups.
Myanmar has been in political turmoil since the military seized power in a 2021 coup
Dozens of pro-democracy parties have either been banned or are refusing to take part in the election, which junta leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing has admitted will not be held nationwide
The second phase will be held two weeks after the first phase on Dec 28, and cover 100 townships nationwide, including several in Yangon, Myanmar’s commercial capital and largest city.
“I don't think anybody believes that those elections will be free and fair,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Oct 27, on the sidelines of the regional Asean summit.
The 11-member grouping of South-east Asian nations acknowledged at its annual gathering that it cannot stop the upcoming general election in Myanmar, but its foreign ministers want the contest to be fair and inclusive.
The junta has since faced widespread opposition from established ethnic armies and newly formed armed groups, which have wrested away large tracts of territory from the well-armed military.
The junta was able to conduct a full, on-the-ground census to generate voter lists in only 145 of the country’s 330 townships, according to a December census report that put Myanmar’s total population at 51.3 million.
Ms Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy and 39 other parties were dissolved by the junta-appointed election commission two years ago for failure to register for the election. REUTERS
