Week 34: 2010 Election Watch (26 October – 1 November)

By Altsean-Burma • November 3, 2010

Developments

NLD members distributed election boycott leaflets in Rangoon’s Insein and Mingaladon Townships. Riot police in Rangoon’s North Okkalapa Township surrounded “no-vote” campaigners as they attempted to distribute election boycott leaflets.
Around 1,200 people from over 150 villages protested the elections in Ye and Thanbyuzayat Townships in Mon State and Kyainnseikyi Township in Karen State.
SPDC Army commanders collected advance votes for the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) from their subordinates and their families before the election in contravention of the SPDC election laws.
USDP members, local SPDC officials, and Election Sub-commission members coerced voters to cast absentee ballots in Rangoon and Tenasserim Divisions and in Chin State.
Kaman National Progressive Party candidate for the People’s Assembly in Sandoway Constituency, Arakan State, Hlaing Win said that the local Elections Sub-commission released voter lists that contained names of non-eligible voters.
A commentary published in all state-run newspapers warned that the “ruling government would have no choice but to remain in charge […] until it holds another election” if people boycotted the 7 November polls.
The Chairman of the Rakhine Nationals Progressive Party sent a letter to the SPDC Election Commission requesting that elections in Kyaukpyu and Myebon Townships, Arakan State, be postponed for a month due to the destruction caused by cyclone Giri.

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Reactions

The NLD said that the “election will be held to prolong the military dictatorship and to confirm the 2008 constitution.”
Democratic Party (Myanmar) Chairman Thu Wai said that with the help of SPDC officials, “the USDP is persuading, threatening, or bribing the voters to cast advance votes for them.”
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said that “conditions for genuine elections that meet international standards have so far not been reached.”
Indonesia FM Marty Natalegawa said the election results are “almost a foregone conclusion” and that there is “obviously a credibility deficit at this time in terms of where the election appears to be heading.”
Australia’s FM Kevin Rudd said that “the upcoming elections still represent something which falls far short of democratic norms.”

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This post is in: 2010 Elections