Overview
- Voting is scheduled to begin on December 28 in a phased process that UN officials say will occur in an environment of threats and violence that endangers civilians.
- OHCHR reports expanded biometric and AI surveillance alongside electronic-only voting that blocks blank or spoiled ballots, raising fears that authorities could trace votes to individuals.
- The UN rights office is verifying accounts of compulsory trainings on voting machines, warnings from armed groups not to participate, and orders for displaced people to return to vote.
- Key opposition forces have been sidelined, with Aung San Suu Kyi jailed, the NLD dissolved, entire minorities excluded, and voting expected to be impossible in rebel-held areas.
- The junta maintains the polls will be free and fair as OHCHR flags fresh arrests, questions mass pardon claims, and urges the United States to reconsider ending protections for Myanmar nationals.