Officials in Myanmar have begun final preparations for a highly contentious general election, testing polling machines in the capital, Yangon, on Saturday, 27 December 2025.
Testing the Voting Systems
Workers from the country's Union Election Commission were seen at a school converted into a polling place, ensuring voting equipment was operational. Photographer Thein Zaw captured the scene as officials rigorously checked the machines ahead of the first phase of voting, scheduled for Sunday, 28 December.
A Vote Shrouded in Conflict and Criticism
This marks Myanmar's first electoral exercise in five years, following the army's takeover in 2021 which ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. The military junta has framed the polls as a return to multiparty democracy, a move widely seen as an attempt to add a facade of legitimacy to its rule.
However, the election is being held against a backdrop of devastating civil war, triggered by the takeover and the widespread popular opposition it ignited. The ongoing conflict has severely complicated the logistics of holding the vote in many contested regions.
A Staged Process and International Scrutiny
The voting process is set to unfold in three distinct phases, with subsequent rounds on 11 January and 25 January 2025. Leading human rights organisations and opposition groups have uniformly condemned the upcoming election, asserting it will be neither free nor fair.
Critics argue that the carefully managed process will do nothing to restore the nation's fragile democracy or bring an end to the brutal civil war that continues to ravage the country.
