Polls open for Myanmar's first general election in 5 years

YANGON, Myanmar — Voters went to the polls Sunday for the initial phase of Myanmar’s first general election in five years, held under the supervision of its military government while a civil war rages throughout much of the country

YANGON, Myanmar — Voters went to the polls Sunday for the initial phase of Myanmar’s first general election in five years, held under the supervision of its military government while a civil war rages throughout much of the country.

Critics charge that the election is designed to add a facade of legitimacy to military rule, which began after the army ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021. Her party won a landslide victory in the 2020 election but was blocked from taking office for a second term.

In Yangon, the country’s largest city, Naypyitaw, the capital, and elsewhere voters were casting their ballots at high schools, government buildings and religious buildings.

Critics argue that the results will lack legitimacy due to the exclusion of major parties and limits on freedom of speech and an atmosphere of repression.

They contend that the expected victory of the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party makes the nominal transition to civilian rule a chimera.