By Danial Azhar
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) -The European Union’s Special Representative for Human Rights Kajsa Ollongren said on Thursday that the grouping had no plans to send observers to an election in military-ruled Myanmar, as it was unlikely to result in a credible outcome.
Critics – including many Western nations – have described the election due to start in late December as a sham exercise aimed at legitimising the Myanmar junta’s rule after it overthrew a civilian democratic government in 2021.
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Ollongren said the necessary conditions for free and fair elections in Myanmar have not been met, and the presence of observers would not make any difference to the outcome.
“I would call them regime-sponsored elections. And if they’re regime-sponsored, they can only lead to one outcome,” Ollogren said in an interview with selected media in Kuala Lumpur.
Myanmar has been in turmoil since the 2021 coup, which triggered an armed rebellion that has captured large swathes of territory across the country.
The junta’s chief Min Aung Hlaing on Wednesday admitted that the military-backed administration will be unable to conduct the upcoming general election across the entire country, in his first public admission that the polls will not be fully inclusive.
(Reporting by Danial Azhar; Writing by Rozanna Latiff; Editing by David Stanway)
