Emergency Over, Power Play Begins in Myanmar

Myanmar’s military-led government on Thursday officially lifted the state of emergency in select areas, signaling its intention to press ahead with long-promised elections.

However, critics and opposition groups warn that the move is merely a ploy to cement the junta’s grip on power under military leader Min Aung Hlaing.

The announcement came Thursday from government spokesperson Zaw Min Tun, more than four years after the military ousted the elected civilian government of Aung San Suu Kyi in a coup.

The 2021 takeover plunged the nation into a brutal civil war that has killed thousands and displaced hundreds of thousands more.

“The state of emergency is abolished today in order for the country to hold elections on the path to a multiparty democracy,” Zaw Min Tun said in a recorded statement shared with the press.

Yet, in a contradictory development just hours later, Myanmar’s state broadcaster reported that martial law and emergency measures would instead be imposed.

According to the broadcaster, they will be imposed across nine of the country’s 14 regions and states due to intensifying armed resistance.

Zaw Min Tun added that nationwide elections are scheduled to take place within the next six months.

MRTV, the country’s military-run television station, later clarified that voting would be staggered across December and January, citing security concerns.

General Min Aung Hlaing, the head of the armed forces and architect of the 2021 coup, signed an order revoking the emergency rule that had previously granted him sweeping powers.

Officially, those powers have now been returned to the “head of state”, a role Min Aung Hlaing already occupies as acting president.

The practical result is that he continues to wield full control over the election timeline and which political parties will be allowed to participate.

“We have already passed the first chapter,” Min Aung Hlaing declared during an event described by state media as an “honorary ceremony” for members of the ruling military council.

“Now, we are starting the second chapter,” he added, referring to the supposed transition toward civilian rule.

Despite this narrative, international observers remain deeply skeptical.

The United Nations and several rights organizations have dismissed the upcoming elections as little more than a façade.

According to them, it is meant to offer a veneer of legitimacy to a military regime accused of widespread atrocities.

Min Aung Hlaing is also facing international legal scrutiny.

He is wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged crimes against humanity committed during the military’s brutal crackdown on the Muslim Rohingya minority.

Since the coup, opposition forces, including lawmakers from Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD), have refused to recognize the military government.

Many of them have joined the National Unity Government (NUG), an exiled shadow administration that has vowed to boycott any election conducted under the junta.

The military has justified its 2021 power grab by claiming massive electoral fraud in the 2020 general election, a claim that was never substantiated.

That election had resulted in a landslide victory for Suu Kyi’s NLD party, which has since been dissolved, with most of its senior figures either jailed or exiled.

Analysts suggest that even with elections, the military has no intention of relinquishing control.

Min Aung Hlaing is expected to retain a leadership role, either by continuing as armed forces chief or by remaining president, effectively extending his reign as Myanmar’s de facto ruler.

China, one of Myanmar’s key regional allies, offered muted support.

A spokesperson from China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that Beijing backs Myanmar’s efforts to resolve internal conflicts.

This, according to the spokesperson, it does “through political means under the constitutional and legal framework.”

In the meantime, political parties are being registered under the junta’s supervision, and preparations are underway.

These include training sessions on the use of electronic voting machines.

Still, with large parts of the country under martial law and widespread opposition to the process, many remain doubtful that the elections will offer a genuine path back to democracy.

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