EU rights envoy: Bloc won't recognise Myanmar's December election

As Myanmar’s military prepares to stage a national election on Dec 28, the European Union’s Special Representative for Human Rights, Kajsa Ollongren, said the bloc will not recognise the polls.

“None of the conditions for a fair and free election have been met,” said Ollongren.

The military seized power in February 2021, overthrowing the elected government led by Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate.

Since the coup, Myanmar has been gripped by a civil conflict in which resistance groups have taken up arms against the junta, leaving thousands dead and millions displaced.

“These are regime-sponsored elections that would only lead to the consolidation of the military. We do not recognise them,” Ollongren (above) told Malaysiakini at the end of her visit to Malaysia for the Asean-EU Civil Society Forum and the Asean-EU Policy Dialogue on Human Rights.

She called instead for “a change of course, to stop the violence and to engage in true dialogue towards a resolution of this conflict”.

“We are not lending any credibility to them by, for instance, not sending any observers, by sanctioning Myanmar, both individuals and companies, and by calling for an end to the conflicts.

“And we really hope, of course, that the neighbouring countries, also the Asean countries, will continue to push for a resolution of this conflict,” she said.

Ollongren also underscored the broader regional impact, noting that every Asean country she met “is affected by the situation in Myanmar. It’s very destabilising for the whole region”.

Concerns that even the presence of observers could legitimise the polls grew after Malaysia’s Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan said Asean would decide collectively whether to send election observers, but expects the bloc may decline.

His remarks followed an Oct 10 claim by Myanmar’s government that Malaysia had assured Asean’s support for its election and pledged to send observer teams, a claim Malaysia has denied.

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