AP, Yangon :
Myanmar’s president says his government and the military, which gave up power only five years ago, will respect the results of Sunday’s elections that are expected to be won by opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s party.
“I heard that there are worries whether the outcome of the election would be respected. Our government and the military want to repeat that we will respect the outcomes of the free and fair election,” President Thein Sein said in a speech broadcast on national television late Friday night.
His remarks are aimed at signaling to the international community that the government is sincere about holding free and credible elections despite concerns about voter list irregularities, intimidation and disenfranchisement of a large section of the population – the Rohingya Muslims who have been denied citizenship and made ineligible to vote.
“According to the outcome of the election, we will work together in the new political arena,” said Thein Sein, who is also the chairman of the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party, which is aligned closely to the military.
Concerns about the military’s lurking influence stems from events in 1990, when it refused to accept results of elections that were won overwhelmingly by Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy party. The junta continued its rule that had begun in 1962.
After intense international pressure, the military called elections in late 2010, which the NLD boycotted, citing unfair rules. By default, the elections were won by the USDP, made up of former military figures. It formally took over power from the junta in 2011.
“To be where we are today, we have overcome a difficult history. It was never easy to be able to hold this election. That’s why as the election will change our destiny, especially in this important transition, I encourage all the voters to vote,” Thein Sein said.
Observers believe that the election is Myanmar’s best chance in decades to move toward greater democracy despite an in-built handicap for Suu Kyi’s party: of the 664 seats in Parliament, 25 percent are reserved for the military.
This means that even without winning an outright majority, the military-aligned USDP will be able to control the legislature with the help of the military’s seats. But given the huge crowds that Suu Kyi and her candidates have been attracting, that might still prove to be difficult for USDP.
Myanmar’s president says his government and the military, which gave up power only five years ago, will respect the results of Sunday’s elections that are expected to be won by opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s party.
“I heard that there are worries whether the outcome of the election would be respected. Our government and the military want to repeat that we will respect the outcomes of the free and fair election,” President Thein Sein said in a speech broadcast on national television late Friday night.
His remarks are aimed at signaling to the international community that the government is sincere about holding free and credible elections despite concerns about voter list irregularities, intimidation and disenfranchisement of a large section of the population – the Rohingya Muslims who have been denied citizenship and made ineligible to vote.
“According to the outcome of the election, we will work together in the new political arena,” said Thein Sein, who is also the chairman of the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party, which is aligned closely to the military.
Concerns about the military’s lurking influence stems from events in 1990, when it refused to accept results of elections that were won overwhelmingly by Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy party. The junta continued its rule that had begun in 1962.
After intense international pressure, the military called elections in late 2010, which the NLD boycotted, citing unfair rules. By default, the elections were won by the USDP, made up of former military figures. It formally took over power from the junta in 2011.
“To be where we are today, we have overcome a difficult history. It was never easy to be able to hold this election. That’s why as the election will change our destiny, especially in this important transition, I encourage all the voters to vote,” Thein Sein said.
Observers believe that the election is Myanmar’s best chance in decades to move toward greater democracy despite an in-built handicap for Suu Kyi’s party: of the 664 seats in Parliament, 25 percent are reserved for the military.
This means that even without winning an outright majority, the military-aligned USDP will be able to control the legislature with the help of the military’s seats. But given the huge crowds that Suu Kyi and her candidates have been attracting, that might still prove to be difficult for USDP.
