Key Points
- UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said Myanmar needs “free, fair, inclusive and credible” elections.
- His statement came on Sunday (December 28), as the first phase of Myanmar’s general election began under military control.
- The electoral process is widely criticised for excluding major opposition parties and taking place amid ongoing civil war and human rights abuses.
ISLAMABAD: United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said on Sunday that Myanmar must hold elections that are “free, fair, inclusive and credible”, as the country’s military government began the first stage of a much‑criticised general election.
His comments underline deep international concern over the legitimacy of the vote, which critics say is being conducted in a climate of repression and conflict, according to thestar.com.my.
The statement came on the day voting opened in parts of Myanmar under military control, the first elections since the February 2021 coup that ousted the elected government led by Aung San Suu Kyi.
Military authorities have framed the polls, starting on today (December 28) and to continue in phases into January 2026, as a return to constitutional order, according to Reuters.
At a moment when ballot boxes were being opened in heavily restricted conditions, Türk warned that real electoral competition and meaningful participation were absent.
“These elections are clearly taking place in an environment of violence and repression,” he said, highlighting ongoing intimidation, arbitrary arrests and severe limitations on freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly, european.express quoted him as saying.
Myanmar’s electoral process has been launched amid a protracted civil war that followed the military’s power grab. Large areas of the country are contested or controlled by armed opposition groups, and millions of civilians have been displaced. Many of the most popular political parties, including the now‑dissolved National League for Democracy led by Suu Kyi, are barred from participating and key leaders remain in detention, according to The Guardian.
International rights groups and foreign governments have echoed the UN’s concerns, describing the election as a tool to legitimise continued military dominance rather than restore democratic governance. Observers note that the voting excludes significant swathes of the population in conflict zones and that campaigning has been muted by security restrictions.
The UN human rights office’s appeal emphasises that credible elections require a political environment in which fundamental rights and freedoms are upheld and all political actors can engage without fear. Without such conditions, Türk and other international officials say, any vote will struggle to win broad recognition or contribute to peace and stability in Myanmar.
