Main Myanmar opposition party to contest general election

Suu Kyi’s party has been seeking more changes in the constitution.

But as elections loom, fears have grown that the nation, which was ruled by the military for almost half a century, might be back-pedalling on its democratic transition.

The democracy icon spent 15 years under house arrest and was also locked up during the last general election in 2010, which was boycotted by the NLD and marred by accusations of cheating.

The commission has urged political parties to submit the list of their candidates in terms of levels of the parliament and constituencies from July 20 to August 8 to contest in the elections and approval will be given after scrutiny.

The party is expected to make huge gains in the ballot box if the vote is free and fair.

The NLD won a general election in 1990 while Suu Kyi was under house arrest, but it was prevented from taking office by the military.

But the ruling, military-backed Union Solidarity Development Party (USDP) of President Thein Sein will be the NLD’s major rival.

It also maintained a ban on opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s ability to become president. It occupies a quarter of the 664 parliamentary seats by appointment, so in effect, it has veto power over all legislation, as well as the amendment process itself.

“If the election is free and fair, the NLD is going to win the majority of votes”, said Zaw.

The constitution was enacted during military rule, and gives the army a dominant say in the administration of the country.

McConnell strongly criticized Myanmar’s government for blocking constitutional changes last month. But Myanmar’s political landscape is now populated with dozens of political parties which will contest the election, individually and in alliances.

The party is yet to identify its candidate for the presidency.

While the speaker’s faction appeared to be growing in power, he said, the military – always a critical player in Myanmar politics – seemed closer to the president’s faction.

Myanmar’s first open general election in 25 years will be a watershed in a still-fragile, four-year-old transition from decades of military rule.

Antipathy towards the Rohingya, and Muslims more generally, has been drummed up by radical nationalist fringes of the country’s powerful Buddhist clergy, which has been pushing for a legal ban on interfaith marriages and other discriminatory measures meant to “protect” Burmese Buddhism.

Representing the Shan minority – who are estimated to make up less than 10 per cent of the population – the SNDP is confident of a thundering victory in and around Shan State, a conflict-scarred and hilly region in the east of Myanmar that borders China, Laos and Thailand.