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Democracy News
Burmese Government Announces New Election Laws; Bans Aung San Suu Kyi
March 10, 2010
By: Randi Zung  Printer Friendly
On March 8, the Burmese government announced that it had finalized its new election laws, paving the way for the country’s first election since 1990. According to the New York Times, a few details about the election laws were released, including the creation of an election commission – whose members will be chosen by the junta. The commission will have the final say, and its decisions will be unable to be challenged. The government has stated that it will release more details about the new election laws, five in total, at a later date but are said to address the creation of two new houses in the country’s parliament, information regarding regional and state elections, and political party registration, BBC News reports. The junta has announced that the vote will be held in 2010, but a specific date has not been released by to the public.
Despite the news of Burma’s electoral changes, the opposition is still critical of the government. Burma’s government-in-exile cites that the country’s constitution remains undemocratic and that the election will not be free and fair unless the junta releases all political prisoners, Voice of America reports. The junta-drawn constitution guarantees the continued rule by the military government, regardless of elections. According to figures from human rights groups, there are reported to be at least 2,100 political prisoners in Burma.
The National League for Democracy (NLD), the political party of detained pro-democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi, has not announced whether they will participate in the country’s upcoming election. In 1990, the NLD won in a legitimate landslide victory but was prevented from taking office by the military government. BBC News reported that NLD spokesman Nyan Win has stated: “What I can say now is the law is meant to safeguard the constitution. It will be a very big problem for us as they asked us to obey a constitution that we cannot accept.”
On March 10, BBC News reported that the new set of election laws, collectively known as the Political Parties Registration Law, was published in official newspapers. According to the new laws, Aung San Suu Kyi has been formally banned from participating in the election. The newly finalized election laws state that individuals with criminal convictions are not allowed to belong to a political party. Suu Kyi, who has spent the majority of the last twenty years in detention, was previously convicted by the junta. Suu Kyi is also not allowed to partake in any campaigning activities. In addition to banning individuals with criminal convictions, the law also prohibits individuals who belong to religious orders and civil servants from political party membership.
Sources:
Previous CCD article regarding Burma:
http://ccd21.org/news/asia/burma_NLD_vicechairman_released.html
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