"Aung San Suu Kyi’s party raised the prospect of a major hitch in Myanmar’s political reforms Thursday, saying it may not take the seats it won in Parliament because the lawmakers’ oath of office has unacceptable wording....
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"Suu Kyi says Myanmar elections not fair, but that she will stay in; Irregularities include attacks, campaign fraud" by Todd Pitman | Associated Press, March 31, 2012
YANGON, Myanmar - Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi said Friday that Myanmar’s landmark weekend elections will be neither free nor fair because of widespread irregularities, but vowed to continue her candidacy for the sake of the long-repressed nation.
Then I shall discount them as I discount most elections these days.
Suu Kyi, 66, said opposition candidates had been targeted in stone-throwing incidents, campaign posters had been vandalized, and members of her party were intimidated during the run-up to Sunday’s closely-watched parliamentary by-elections.
During a press conference on the lawn of her crumbling lakeside residence in Yangon, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate said government officials were involved in some of the irregularities and that they go “beyond what is acceptable for democratic elections.’’
That did have a chef.
The vote to fill several dozen vacant legislative seats comes after months of surprising reforms carried out by Myanmar’s nominally civilian post-junta government, including the release of political prisoners, truces with rebel groups, and a dramatic easing of media censorship.
See: Muddling Through Myanmar
The poll is a crucial test of Myanmar’s commitment to change, and Western nations have held out the possibility of lifting some sanctions if all goes smoothly.
In a televised speech last Sunday, President Thein Sein admitted to “unnecessary errors’’ in ballot lists and asked voters and politicians to respect “the decision of the people.’’
Presidential adviser Nay Zin Latt said “there could be some flaws and some bumps in the process, but our leaders have publicly said that their policy is to hold a free, fair, and impartial election.’’
What is important, he added, is that “the country is on its reform road, and is in the process of building a democratic society.’’
The vote is likely to mark a symbolic turning point by bringing Suu Kyi into Parliament for the first time since she emerged to lead the nation’s struggle for democracy nearly a quarter century ago. She spent most of that time under house arrest, and her candidacy has raised hopes for a more representative government after almost 50 years of military rule. It could also set the stage for her to run for president during the next national poll in 2015.
But with Parliament overwhelmingly dominated by the ruling party, and with 25 percent of legislative seats allotted to the army, Suu Kyi and her opposition colleagues will be hard-pressed to achieve much if elected....
The United States said Friday it has raised its concerns with Myanmar authorities about irregularities in the run-up to the vote. State Department spokesman Mark Toner said the United States will watch the election closely, although he cautioned that international observers will not have enough time for a proper assessment of the vote.
We are the last country that should be commenting on vote fraud! We're rife with it.
“This is an important moment for Burma. These by-elections, if seen as free and fair, will demonstrate the government’s commitment to democratization,’’ Toner said in Washington. “This would further propel momentum in our bilateral relations.’’
Suu Kyi said she was confident that Thein Sein “wishes for democratic reform, but as I’ve always said, I have never been certain as to exactly how much support there has been behind him, particularly from the military.’’
The by-election will fill 45 vacant seats in Myanmar’s 664-seat national Parliament.
Suu Kyi’s appearance marked her first in public since she suspended campaigning last week due to exhaustion.
Whatever the result of Sunday’s ballot, Suu Kyi said the opposition campaign had scored a triumph by raising political awareness and drawing widespread participation, especially among the younger generation.
“After decades of quiescence, one might have expected that very few of our people would be in a position to take part in such a process, but we have found that they are quick to wake up and quick to understand what the issues are and what the challenges are,’’ Suu Kyi said.
That's when heads start to roll.
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Related: Suu Kyi's backers say she won seat in Myanmar
Only problem is it was an illegitimate vote, right?
"Myanmar opposition sets its sights on winning more seats" April 03, 2012
YANGON, Myanmar - The democratic opposition’s victory in Sunday’s parliamentary elections may have sown the seeds of something far more significant than the few seats it won: the possibility it could sweep the next balloting in 2015 and take control of Myanmar’s government.
Look, let's not get carried away with a fraudulent win, 'eh?
For now, that remains only a tantalizing dream for supporters of democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi. Making it happen in three years’ time may be unrealistic in a nation still heavily influenced by a feared military whose powers and influence remain enshrined in the constitution.
Still, times have changed dramatically since then in Myanmar, previously called Burma. The junta is no more, and the country’s new leaders - many of whom are former generals - have proven with Sunday’s poll that they are capable of taking concrete steps toward democratic rule, even if they had little to lose by doing so this time around.
But much remains the same: The military and the retired generals who hold the nation’s top posts still wield near-absolute power, and Suu Kyi and her party will occupy only a small minority in the 664-seat legislature - not enough to change a constitution engineered to keep the status quo....
WTF is with the mixed messages, you agenda-pushing pos?
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That agenda, btw, is about peeling Myanmar away from China.
"Myanmar’s leader calls election ‘successful’" April 04, 2012|By Jim Gomez and Sopheng Cheang
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia - Cambodia, in its capacity as the the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ chair, welcomed the conduct of the polls and called for Western nations to lift crippling economic and political sanctions imposed on Myanmar because of repression by its previous military regime....
Yes, as we saw over the weekend in South America, LOCAL COUNTRIES have their OWN IDEAS regarding how the region should be run!
Suu Kyi kept a low profile Tuesday after a jubilant victory speech a day earlier outside her party headquarters, where thousands of supporters crowded the streets to see her.
“We hope this will be the beginning of a new era,’’ Suu Kyi told the crowd.
She called her victory “a triumph of the people who have decided that they have to be involved in the political process in this country.’’
The winning National League candidates included former political prisoners and activists and about 10 candidates who won office in the 1990 election - a victory the army refused to recognize.
Hip-hop singer Zeyar Thaw, 31, took part in 2007’s Buddhist monk-led mass protests and helped found the Generation Wave student protest group. Arrested in 2008, he was serving a six-year prison term before being released under an amnesty in May 2011.
He won a seat in Myanmar’s capital, Naypyitaw.
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"Lauding electoral strides, US eases its sanctions on Myanmar; First steps follow prodding by bloc of Asian nations" by Steven Lee Myers and Thomas Fuller | New York Times, April 05, 2012
WASHINGTON - The Obama administration announced its most significant steps to date Wednesday to normalize relations with Myanmar, lifting a travel ban on some of the country’s senior leaders and easing sanctions on US investments there as Myanmar confirmed the opposition’s weekend electoral sweep....
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said the United States would shortly name its first ambassador to the country - formerly known as Burma - since 1990 and that a mission from the Agency for International Development will begin coordinating US assistance for programs in democracy-building and health. Restrictions on operations by nongovernmental organizations will also be lifted.
The announcement came on a day when Southeast Asian leaders called on Western countries to lift sanctions immediately in light of significant positive developments in the country....
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Related: British PM pushes supsension of Myanmar sanctions
Globe spent a long time in that voting booth.
