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Journalism of Courage
The preparations in Myanmar to carry out next month’s national elections,the first in over 20 years,have been flawed and fall short of international expectations,said a UN envoy.
“It is clear that this process remains deeply flawed,” Tomas Ojea Quintana,the international body’s special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar,told a General Assembly committee.
The envoy,that since 2008 reports annually to the Human Rights Council in Geneva and the General Assembly,said this year’s report is focused on the country’s handling of human rights issues as it prepares for landmark elections on Nov 7.
The party registration requirements,the prohibitively high costs of registering candidates and the short period for parties not backed by the military junta to organise have also been road blocks to a fair and free process,he said.
“Therefore,it is with disappointment that I have watched the developments of the electoral process in Myanmar,which has in effect been ongoing for the better part of this year,” he added.
“It is clear that the process has not been inclusive.”
In addition to voicing worries over the welfare of more than 2,000 political prisoners,Ojea Quintana expressed serious concerns about a number of ethnic parties and candidates who have been excluded as well as a rise in ethnic tensions.
“A meaningful democratic transition and national reconciliation process should result in a system whereby all stakeholders would have the opportunity to be heard and the people of Myanmar actually participate in the governance of this richly diverse country,” he noted.
Ojea Quintana,an Argentine lawyer,has traveled three times to Myanmar since taking over as envoy in May 2008. He has been given access to speak with prisoners,as well as with senior government officials and representatives from some political parties.
