Upcoming Burmese Elections Are Essentially A Sham, Facilitating Militarization and Removal of Human Rights

It is a critical time in my country’s history. The military junta, called the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), has ruled Burma since 1962 through violence and the severe repression of dissidents, ethnic armed-resistance groups, and pro-democracy leaders.

On Sunday, November 7, the SDPC will hold a general election, the first since 1990 when they rejected the result of National League for Democracy's (NLD) landslide victory and placed Daw Aung San Suu Kyi -- a leader who has the potential to lead the country forward -- under house arrest and unable to contest the elections.

At first glance, an election seems to offer new hope for the people of Burma who have been fighting for democracy for so long. Yet, while the authorities claim the elections will be free and fair, the political space is tightly controlled, and opponents of the ruling regime are routinely harassed, detained, tortured, and imprisoned.

Furthermore, the new parliament will have to adopt the sham 2008 constitution, which guarantees military control over all sectors of government. In the controversial constitution there is no mention of federalism, despite federalism being an important way of managing the ethnic conflicts in Burma -- a country comprising eight major ethnic groups and many others that together constitute 30 percent of the the population. The 2008 constitution also requires the chief minister -- the head of each region or state -- to answer to the president. Additionally, the chief ministers will now be appointed by the president. State governments also lose control over their natural resources, ethnic literature, and culture to the central government’s control.

The most powerful decision making body, according to the 2008 constitution, will be the National Defense and Security Council (NDSC), which consists of 11 members with six from military personnel. This body along with the president has the mandate to declare a state of emergency anytime, which allows for the immediate removal of all basic human rights by the constitution. The SPDC is already known for cutting off internet access and cell phone networks during periods of social unrest.

In democratic countries, after a parliamentary election, the government allocates members for different ministries and committees. With this carefully designed constitution, Burma’s new ministries and committees will be solely influenced by military personnel, which means we cannot expect political, social, or economic policy changes. The power of the military will not be challenged by these two parliamentary houses, which do not possess any real power because of the number of seats reserved for military personnel. Any major policy change will require more than 75 percent consensus of the parliaments. Therefore, the Army will still control the decisions. The fact that the Defense Ministry, Security Ministry, Home Ministry, and Border Affairs Ministry will be controlled by the president further indicates that the parliamentary houses do not possess any real power to decide on these important national policies.

The president also has direct control over the judicial system, and therefore there will be no independent judiciary. The chief justice will be appointed by the president and the president can denounce the position of the chief justice whenever he or she likes. The Army will have their own judiciary system called court-martial, which is a contradiction to transparency and accountability before the law.

Articles 444 and 445 of the constitution grant the military blanket immunity for past, current, and future human rights violations committed against civilans, including war crimes and crimes against humanity. Systematic sexual violence against women is rampant, forced labor is widespread, the use of child soldiers exists, and over 2,100 political prisoners remain behind bars. In the fall of 2007, Burmese citizens and Buddhist clergy were shot while peacefully protesting. In addition, monasteries were raided, and monks were beaten and arrested. This corrupt behavior will continue and the protection of human rights at the domestic court level will remain non-existent.