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Egypt Independent
21 hours ago
- Politics
- Egypt Independent
This military junta is rebranding itself to hold elections. But a UN probe has found evidence of intensifying atrocities
As evidence mounts of intensifying atrocities, including the torture of children, being committed in Myanmar, the country's military generals are rebranding their junta regime and planning stage-managed elections in a nation they only control parts of. They've rescinded a four-year state of emergency order, imposed during their 2021 military coup, and formed a caretaker administration to govern the war-torn Southeast Asian country until a new parliament is assembled following a national vote. But it is merely a cosmetic change, analysts say — designed to give the appearance that it's playing by the democratic playbook while remaining firmly in power, something Myanmar's military have a long and notorious history of doing. The election, to be held in stages over December 2025 and January 2026, is resoundingly regarded as a sham and a tool used by the junta to give it a veneer of legitimacy as it seeks to entrench its rule and gain international recognition. The junta's notoriety, though, is only growing. UN investigators have gathered evidence of systemic torture against those detained by the military, summary executions of captured combatants or civilians accused of being informers, children as young as two being detained in place of their parents, and aerial attacks on schools, homes and hospitals. Here's what to know: How we got here For more than four years, Myanmar's military rulers have waged a brutal civil war across the country, sending columns of troops on bloody rampages, torching and bombing villages, massacring residents, jailing opponents and forcing young men and women to join the army. The United Nations and other rights groups have accused the military of war crimes as it battles democracy fighters and longstanding ethnic armed groups to cling to power. Military officers march during a parade to commemorate Myanmar's 80th Armed Forces Day in Naypyidaw, Myanmar, on March 27, 2025. Aung Shine Oo/AP At the head of this junta is Sen. Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the army chief who seized power in 2021, overthrowing the democratically elected government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and installed himself as leader. The military, which had previously ruled Myanmar with an iron fist for decades, sought to justify its takeover by alleging widespread voter fraud in the 2020 election, which was won in a landslide by Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy Party. The claims were never substantiated. Min Aung Hlaing has been sanctioned and spurned by the West, the country's economy is in tatters, and his military has lost significant territory in its grinding, multi-front civil war. Evidence of 'systemic torture' The UN's Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar has said that the 'frequency and intensity' of atrocities in the country has only escalated over the past year. Children as young as two years old were often detained in place of their parents and some were also abused and tortured, the group found. It has collected evidence of 'systemic torture' in the military-run detention facilities, including rape and other forms of sexual violence. Some detainees died as a result of the torture, according to the IIMM. Protesters sit in the middle of the street during the demonstration to protest against the military coup on February 1, 2021 in Yangon, Myanmar. Santosh Krl/SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Inmages/File Those responsible include specific members and units of security forces involved in operations as well as high-ranking commanders, according to the group. The military has repeatedly denied committing atrocities and says it is targeting 'terrorists.' The junta has not responded to media requests for comment. 'A sham election' The junta said its election objectives are for a 'genuine, disciplined multiparty democratic system and the building of a union based on democracy and federalism.' But with most of the country's pro-democracy lawmakers in exile or jail, and the military's widespread repression and attacks on the people, such a vote would never be considered free or fair, observers say. 'It's a sham election… It's not inclusive, it's not legitimate,' Mi Kun Chan Non, a women's activist working with Myanmar's Mon ethnic minority, told CNN. Many observers have warned that Min Aung Hlaing is seeking to legitimize his power grab through the ballot box and rule through proxy political parties. 'He needs to make himself legitimate … He thought that the election is the only way (to do that.),' said Mi Kun Chan Non. The United States and most Western countries have never recognized the junta as the legitimate government of Myanmar, and the election has been denounced by several governments in the region – including Japan and Malaysia. A soldier from the Karenni Nationalities Defence Force (KNDF), a main armed group fighting the military, walks to a reconnaissance mission. Thierry Falise/LightRocket//Getty Images A collective of international election experts said a genuine election in Myanmar 'is impossible under the current conditions,' in a joint statement released by the umbrella organization International Idea. The experts pointed to 'draconian legislation banning opposition political parties, the arrest and detention of political leaders and democracy activists, severe restrictions of the media, and the organization of an unreliable census by the junta as a basis for the voter list.' Others say they cannot trust the military when it continues its campaign of violence, and when its history is littered with false promises of reform. Voting in a war zone Details on the election process are thin, but many citizens could be casting their votes in an active conflict zone or under the eyes of armed soldiers – a terrifying prospect that some say could lead to more violence. Junta bombs have destroyed homes, schools, markets, places of worship and hospitals, and are a primary cause of the displacement of more than 3.5 million people across the country since the coup. There are fears that those in junta-controlled areas will be threatened or coerced into voting. And some townships may never get to vote, given the junta's lack of control over large swathes of the country outside its heartland and major cities. One of the country's most powerful ethnic armed groups, the Arakan Army, has said it will not allow elections to be held in territories it controls, which includes most of western Rakhine state. In pictures: Aung San Suu Kyi 37 photos Aung San Suu Kyi poses for a portrait in Yangon, Myanmar, in 2010. A month earlier, she had been released from house arrest. Drn/Getty Images And the National Unity Government, an exiled administration which considers itself the legitimate government of Myanmar, has urged the people to 'oppose and resist' participating in the poll, saying the junta 'does not have the right or authority to conduct elections.' There are also signs the military is moving to consolidate its power in those parts of the country it does not control. As it rescinded the nationwide state of emergency, it also imposed martial law in more than 60 townships – giving the military increased powers in resistance strongholds. 'The military has been pushing hard to reclaim the territories it has lost, but regaining consolidated control — especially in the lead-up to the elections — will be a near impossibility within such a short timeframe,' said Ye Myo Hein, a senior fellow at the Southeast Asia Peace Institute, based in Washington DC. 'Instead, holding elections amid this perilous context is likely to trigger even greater violence and escalate conflict nationwide.' Already, there are moves to further quash dissent ahead of the poll. A new law criminalizes criticism of the election, threatening long prison sentences for those opposing or disrupting the vote. And a new cybercrime law expands the regime's online surveillance powers, banning unauthorized use of VPNs and targeting users who access or share content from prohibited social media sites. Like 'putting old wine in a new bottle' Min Aung Hlaing recently formed a new governing body, the National Security and Peace Commission (NSPC), replacing the previous State Administration Council. The junta chief also has added chairman of the new regime to the roster of titles he now holds, which includes acting President and chief of the armed forces. And the new interim administration is stacked with loyalists and active military officers. The move was 'nothing more than an old trick — putting old wine in a new bottle,' said Ye Myo Hein. 'The military has used such tactics many times throughout its history to create the illusion of change… The military junta, led by Min Aung Hlaing, remains firmly in the driver's seat.' It has been here before. Myanmar has been governed by successive military regimes since 1962, turning a once prosperous nation into an impoverished pariah state home to some of the world's longest running insurgencies. A military soldier (L) stands in front of a pile of seized illegal drugs during a destruction ceremony in Yangon on June 26, 2025. Sai Aung Main/AFP/Getty Images In 2008, the military regime pushed ahead with constitutional reform that paved the way for a semi-civilian government to take power, while preserving its significant influence on the country's politics. What followed was a decade of limited democratic reform and freedoms that brought greater foreign investment –- including the return of global brands like Coca-cola – and engagement with western nations. A generation of young Myanmar nationals began to dream of a different future to their parents and grandparents, as investment and opportunities poured in. But the military never really gave up political power. When state counselor Aung San Suu Kyi's party stormed to a second term victory in the 2020 election, it came as a surprise to some military figures, who had hoped their own proxy party might take power democratically. The former democracy icon was detained during a coup the following year, tried by a military court and sentenced to 27 years in prison. The 80-year-old's exact whereabouts is still a tightly guarded secret, and the junta has sought to ensure Suu Kyi and her popular, but now dissolved, NLD party would be politically wiped out. International recognition By presenting itself as a civilian government, analysts say the military will also try to convince some countries to normalize ties. Russia and China are two of Myanmar's biggest backers, and Thailand and India have pushed for more engagement with the junta to end the crisis on their borders. China's foreign ministry last Thursday said it 'supports Myanmar's development path in line with its national conditions and Myanmar's steady advancement of its domestic political agenda.' In recent weeks, Min Aung Hlaing had unexpectedly good news from the US. A letter from the Trump administration detailing its new tariff rates was spun domestically by the junta leader as increased engagement. Then, the Trump administration dropped sanctions on several companies and individuals responsible for supplying weapons to Myanmar, prompting outcry from the UN Special Rapporteur for Myanmar Tom Andrews who called the moved 'unconscionable and a major step backward for efforts to save innocent lives.' Members of Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) receive military equipment after getting special combat training in a secret jungle near Namhkam, Myanmar's northern Shan State on November 9, 2024. Stringer/AFP/Getty Images Myanmar's Ministry of Information has also signed a $3 million a year deal with Washington lobbying firm DCI Group to help rebuild relations with the US, Reuters news agency recently reported. The group, as well as the US Treasury Department, the US State Department, and Myanmar's Washington embassy did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment. Democracy supporters opposed to the junta have warned the international community against falling for the military's election plan, and say such a poll will never be accepted by the people. Min Aung Hlaing and his junta 'have sucked all the resources and money than can and the country has nothing left,' said Mi Kun Chan Non, the women's activist. 'Everything has fallen apart … The education system has collapsed; the healthcare system has collapsed. Business is just for the cronies.' So, any future peace negotiations that follow the elections, 'we can never trust,' she said. 'And the situation of the people on the ground will not change.'
Nikkei Asia
06-08-2025
- Politics
- Nikkei Asia
Myanmar regime targets resistance forces with new laws ahead of election
Military officers march during a parade to commemorate Myanmar's 80th Armed Forces Day in Naypyitaw, Myanmar. © AP Nikkei staff writers BANGKOK/YANGON -- Myanmar's military government is introducing a string of laws aimed at consolidating its control and countering resistance forces ahead of an election at the end of this year, raising concerns with overseas businesses about compliance risks.
Japan Times
31-03-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
A question in quake-wracked Myanmar: Does this augur the end of the junta?
The dust from the devastating earthquake Friday was still churning in Myanmar when an existential question swirled into the mix: Could this fatal clash of tectonic plates, which added yet another layer of trauma to a country already plagued by civil war, also portend the demise of Myanmar's ruling junta? The earthquake, known to have killed at least 1,000 and probably many more than that, struck a day after Myanmar's military regime celebrated the country's 80th Armed Forces Day with a parade in Naypyitaw, the capital purpose-built by a previous group of generals. The sequence of events was hard to ignore. Omens and rumors have long been prized in an authoritarian country with little free flow of information. When the ruling generals grabbed power four years ago, they sealed off the country and reverted to a reverence of superstition and propaganda. And earthquakes do figure into astrological almanacs that are well thumbed in Myanmar. A popular version states that an earthquake in March signals the destruction of cities, while one in July is an augury of kings and rulers deposed. The junta's stronghold remains in the cities, like in Mandalay, the second-largest in the country and one of the hardest hit by the earthquake. Marlar Myint, 89, said this was the worst natural disaster she had ever experienced. A retired school principal, she is not waiting until July to cast her prediction. Rescue personnel work at the site of a building that collapsed in Mandalay, Myanmar, on Saturday. | Reuters "We have a saying that a massive earthquake like this is nature's way of punishing a cruel and corrupt ruler,' she said. "After killing so many people, Min Aung Hlaing is now facing the judgment of nature. "Even the bones of those he murdered are trembling,' she added. Since Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing overthrew Myanmar's elected government in 2021, civil war has flared in this Southeast Asian country. The majority of territory is now in resistance hands, with the military fortified in the big cities. The junta has terrorized civilian areas with airstrikes outpaced in recent months only by those rained on the Gaza Strip. The Myanmar rebels — an unwieldy assortment of ethnic minority militias, opposition politicians and tech-savvy youth who are honing drone warfare out of jury-rigged parts — have fought hard with little international support. The Myanmar military is bleeding soldiers, with desertion rife. Still, it is punishing jungle warfare, and both sides are desperate for an exit. And as people in Myanmar on Saturday surveyed the aftermath of the earthquake, with screams from those trapped under the wreckage still echoing through towns, the full extent of the devastation is only beginning to take shape. Ko Kyaw works in Singapore, part of the large diaspora of young, educated people from Myanmar who fled their country to look for better jobs overseas. He had been sending money back home to his parents, wife and two daughters, ages 4 and 7. They all died in the earthquake, when their condominium building in Mandalay crashed to the ground. Their bodies were part of a pile arranged inside a nearby hall, no space for burial yet. For most of its postcolonial history, Myanmar, previously known as Burma, has been ruled by military dictatorships. Generations of generals have relied on fortunetellers and astrologers to guide their policy decisions. A former junta chief consulted a dwarf who spoke through her sister. (That sister continued to prognosticate after her sibling died, but her prophecies lost authenticity, according to those who initially paid a lot of money for her solo consultation sessions.) One former spy chief collected white elephants (the real, live kind) to burnish his power. An earlier junta leader was so superstitious about the number nine that he denominated the country's currency by it, including 45 and 90 kyat notes. And Min Aung Hlaing, the current military chief, has consecrated temples and a giant Buddha in Naypyitaw to burnish his reputation. He has collected white elephants, too. For the generals, perhaps the most consequential prophecy came in 2005. That is when seers determined the precise timing most auspicious for beginning a secret move of Myanmar's capital from Yangon to an as-yet unnamed construction site in the center of the country. After consultations with fortunetellers, trucks began a convoy north to what would soon be called Naypyitaw, or the abode of kings. Rescue personnel work at the site of a building that collapsed on Saturday in Mandalay, Myanmar. | Reuters Today, the new capital is defended by hills and invulnerable to attack by sea, unlike Yangon. When Cyclone Nargis slammed into the old capital and the nearby Irrawaddy Delta in 2008, leaving more than 130,000 people dead or missing, Naypyitaw was unscathed. The generals celebrated their bunkered capital, with its grand boulevards, massive ministries and penguins on ice (again, the real, live kind). But Friday's earthquake was not so benign to Naypyitaw. Government ministries cracked. Portraits of top leaders, including of Min Aung Hlaing, fell to the floor. The air traffic control tower in the capital toppled, killing at least seven people, according to Myanmar state media. In hills not too far away, rebel forces are watching. With fewer high buildings in the territory they control, the earthquake Friday had less effect on them. But even as residents of Mandalay and other urban areas, like Sagaing and Kyaukse, dug through the rubble with their bare hands, prying out each brick to get closer to possible survivors, the Myanmar military resumed its old habits. On Friday evening, in northern Shan state, which borders Mandalay region, junta fighter jets dropped bombs on Naung Lin village, which is held by the rebels. There were no casualties this time, but sorties two days before killed four people in nearby villages. And a week and a half before that, 10 people sheltering in a seminary in the same township died in aerial raids. "I just can't believe they did airstrikes at the same time as the earthquake,' said Lway Yal Oo, a Naung Lin resident. "Min Aung Hlaing is creating a killing field in Myanmar.' In Yangon, an astrologer for a top junta official said that the top brass's belief in star signs has not waned. If anything, they are hanging on even more to faith as their grip on the country diminishes, she said. The astrologer, who did not want her name used because of the sensitivity of speaking about her high-profile military clients, said that Min Aung Hlaing relies heavily on Buddhist talismans to stay in power. On Saturday morning, a military intermediary called her, the astrologer said, and requested help in protecting the junta chief's hold on Myanmar. She advised a Buddha amulet, to be worn at all times. But, the astrologer said, she thought the earthquake was an ominous sign for the general. This article originally appeared in The New York Times © 2025 The New York Times Company
New York Times
29-03-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
A Question in Quake-Wracked Myanmar: Does This Augur the End of the Junta?
The dust from the devastating earthquake on Friday was still churning in Myanmar when an existential question swirled into the mix: Could this fatal clash of tectonic plates, which added yet another layer of trauma to a country already plagued by civil war, also portend the demise of Myanmar's ruling junta? The earthquake, known to have killed at least 1,000 and probably many more than that, struck a day after Myanmar's military regime celebrated the country's 80th Armed Forces Day with a parade in Naypyidaw, the capital purpose-built by a previous group of generals. The sequence of events was hard to ignore. Omens and rumors have long been prized in an authoritarian country with little free flow of information. When the ruling generals grabbed power four years ago, they sealed off the country and reverted to a reverence of superstition and propaganda. And earthquakes do figure into astrological almanacs that are well thumbed in Myanmar. A popular version states that an earthquake in March signals the destruction of cities, while one in July is an augury of kings and rulers deposed. The junta's stronghold remains in the cities, like in Mandalay, the second-largest in the country and one of the hardest hit by the earthquake. Daw Marlar Myint, 89, said this was the worst natural disaster she had ever experienced. A retired school principal, she is not waiting until July to cast her prediction. 'We have a saying that a massive earthquake like this is nature's way of punishing a cruel and corrupt ruler,' she said. 'After killing so many people, Min Aung Hlaing is now facing the judgment of nature.' 'Even the bones of those he murdered are trembling,' she added. Since Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing overthrew Myanmar's elected government in 2021, civil war has flared in this Southeast Asian country. The majority of territory is now in resistance hands, with the military fortified in the big cities. The junta has terrorized civilian areas with airstrikes outpaced in recent months only by those rained on Gaza. The Myanmar rebels — an unwieldy assortment of ethnic minority militias, opposition politicians and tech-savvy youth who are honing drone warfare out of jury-rigged parts — have fought hard with little international support. The Myanmar military is bleeding soldiers, with desertion rife. Still, it is punishing jungle warfare, and both sides are desperate for an exit. And as people in Myanmar surveyed the aftermath of the earthquake on Saturday, with screams from those trapped under the wreckage still echoing through towns, the full extent of the devastation is only beginning to take shape. Ko Kyaw works in Singapore, part of the large diaspora of young, educated people from Myanmar who fled their country to look for better jobs overseas. He had been sending money back home to his parents, wife and two daughters, ages 4 and 7. They all died in the earthquake, when their condominium building in Mandalay crashed to the ground. Their bodies were part of a pile arranged inside a nearby hall, no space for burial yet. For most of its post-colonial history, Myanmar, previously known as Burma, has been ruled by military dictatorships. Generations of generals have relied on fortunetellers and astrologers to guide their policy decisions. A former junta chief consulted a dwarf who spoke through her sister. (That sister continued to prognosticate after her sibling died, but her prophesies lost authenticity, according to those who initially paid a lot of money for her solo consultation sessions.) One former spy chief collected white elephants (the real, live kind) to burnish his power. An earlier junta leader was so superstitious about the number nine that he denominated the country's currency by it, including 45 and 90 kyat notes. And General Min Aung Hlaing, the current military chief, has consecrated temples and a giant Buddha in Naypyidaw to burnish his reputation. He has collected white elephants, too. For the generals, perhaps the most consequential prophesy came in 2005. That is when seers determined the precise timing most auspicious for beginning a secret move of Myanmar's capital from Yangon to an as-yet unnamed construction site in the center of the country. After consultations with fortunetellers, trucks began a convoy north to what would soon be called Naypyidaw, or the abode of kings. Today, the new capital is defended by hills and invulnerable to attack by sea, unlike Yangon. When Cyclone Nargis slammed into the old capital and the nearby Irrawaddy Delta in 2008, leaving more than 130,000 people dead or missing, Naypyidaw was unscathed. The generals celebrated their bunkered capital, with its grand boulevards, massive ministries and penguins on ice (again, the real, live kind). But Friday's earthquake was not so benign to Naypyidaw. Government ministries cracked. Portraits of top leaders, including of General Min Aung Hlaing, fell to the floor. The air traffic control tower in the capital toppled, killing at least seven people, according to Myanmar state media. In hills not too far away, rebel forces are watching. With fewer high buildings in the territory they control, the earthquake on Friday had less effect on them. But even as residents of Mandalay and other urban areas, like Sagaing and Kyaukse, dug through the rubble with their bare hands, prying out each brick to get closer to possible survivors, the Myanmar military resumed its old habits. On Friday evening, in northern Shan State, which borders Mandalay Region, junta fighter jets dropped bombs on Naung Lin village, which is held by the rebels. There were no casualties this time, but sorties two days before killed four people in nearby villages. And a week and half before that, 10 people sheltering in a seminary in the same township died in aerial raids. 'I just can't believe they did airstrikes at the same time as the earthquake,' said Lway Yal Oo, a Naung Lin resident. 'Min Aung Hlaing is creating a killing field in Myanmar.' In Yangon, an astrologer for a top junta official said that the top brass's belief in star signs has not waned. If anything, they are hanging on even more to faith as their grip on the country diminishes, she said. The astrologer, who did not want her name used because of the sensitivity of speaking about her high-profile military clients, said that General Min Aung Hlaing relies heavily on Buddhist talismans to stay in power. On Saturday morning, a military intermediary called her, the astrologer said, and requested help in protecting the junta chief's hold on Myanmar. She advised a Buddha amulet, to be worn at all times. But, the astrologer said, she thought the earthquake was an ominous sign for the general.
Euronews
27-03-2025
- Politics
- Euronews
Myanmar military chief Min Aung Hlaing commits to hold elections by year's end
ADVERTISEMENT Myanmar's military chief has used a speech at the annual Armed Forces Day to reaffirm plans to hold a general election by the end of the year and call on opposition groups fighting the army to join in party politics and the electoral process. Min Aung Hlaing said his military government was preparing to hold an election in December and that it will be conducted according to the security conditions in the country's different regions, where armed conflicts are often playing out. He spoke before more than 7,000 military personnel, held in the capital Naypyidaw. Officers and spectators at a parade to commemorate Myanmar's 80th Armed Forces Day in Naypyidaw, 27 March, 2025 AP Photo Rifle-bearing servicemen and women stood to attention as the general reviewed their ranks from the back of an open vehicle. They then marched past him in order, saluting him as fighter jets flew overhead, firing off flares into the night sky. Seizing power The 2021 military coup which ousted democratically-elected State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi has been met with widespread opposition, sparking widespread protests and triggering an armed resistance which has plunged much of the country into conflict. The military junta has since said an election was the primary goal but has repeatedly pushed back the date. The plan for a general election is widely seen as an attempt to legitimise the military's seizure of power through the ballot box and to deliver a result that ensures the generals retain control. In his speech, Min Aung Hlaing also tried to justify the overthrow of Suu Kyi's elected government with familiar but widely discredited accusations of it failing to investigate irregularities in the November 2020 general election and repeating that his government would hold "a free and fair election" and hand over power afterward. Aung San Suu Kyi waits to address judges of the International Court of Justice on the second day of three days of hearings in The Hague, 11 December, 2019 AP Photo The country's current security situation, with the military believed to control less than half the country, poses a serious challenge to holding elections. Critics have already said the military-planned ballot will be neither free nor fair because there is no free media and most of the leaders of Suu Kyi's popular but now dissolved National League for Democracy party have been arrested. Suu Kyi is serving prison sentences totalling 27 years after being convicted in a series of prosecutions widely seen as politically motivated. The 80th anniversary of Armed Forces Day marks the day in 1945 when the army of Myanmar, then known as Burma, began its fight against occupying Japanese forces who had taken over after driving out the British. Min Aung Hlaing, during a visit to Belarus earlier this month, announced the time frame for the election. He said then that 53 political parties have already submitted their lists to participate in the election. ADVERTISEMENT Anti-coup protesters display signs during a protest against the military coup in Mandalay, 15 March, 2021 AP Photo State media reported that he reiterated the election plans at an official meeting on Tuesday, though the reports were unclear on whether the vote would be held in the last two weeks of December, the first two weeks of January or over a period extending for those four weeks. Separately, state-run MRTV television reported that Min Aung Hlaing had granted amnesty to seven foreign prisoners, including four Thais jailed in the southern coastal town of Kawthaung who will be deported. It is not unusual for amnesties for prisoners to be announced on state or religious holidays.
