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Suu Kyi in poll success

April 1, 2012

Burmese democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi has won a seat in parliament following landmark by-elections, according to the opposition. The victory marks Suu Kyi’s first election to public office after decades of repression.

https://p.dw.com/p/14W1k
Aung San Suu Kyi
Image: AP

The opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) confirmed the by-election results, which were displayed on a digital signboard at party headquarters in Myanmar's main city of Yangon.

NLD supporters erupted in euphoric cheers after the announcement was made.

The elections were the first that Suu Kyi has contested, as she was under house arrest at the hands of Myanmar's military junta during the past two ballots in 1990 and 2010.

Forty-five seats in the 664-member parliament were up for grabs in the nation-wide vote, with the NLD contesting 44 seats.

The chief of the regional bloc the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Surin Pitsuwan, said voting had been conducted "rather smoothly." Observers from ASEAN were among those invited by Myanmar's government to oversee the polls.

Suu Kyi, however, had complained of irregularities during the campaign, including alleged intimidation of candidates and the appearance of deceased people on election rolls.

"I don't think we can consider it a genuinely free and fair election," Suu Kyi had told a news conference on Friday. She said the irregularities were "really beyond what is acceptable for a democratic election."

Although the few dozen contested seats are unlikely to have any major political impact on Myanmar's 664-member legislature, the polls are seen by many international observers as a test of the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party's (USDP) commitment to reform and democratization.

Burma: People are full of hope for the future # aufbruch12g # 01.04.2012 18 Uhr # Journal # englisch # nicht im Mediacenter

The by-election could also serve as an important bellwether for the next general election in 2015.

Road of reform

In 2010, the USDP assumed power from Myanmar's long-ruling military junta in elections that were criticized for excluding the NLD and being neither free nor fair. Although widely considered a civilian front for the military, the USDP has surprised the international community by implementing a series of reforms since coming to power.

President Thein Sein - a retired lieutenant general - has freed political prisoners, signed truces with rebel groups and opened dialogue with Suu Kyi, long a symbol of Myanmar's repressed opposition. Thein also invited hundreds of journalists and dozens of independent monitors to observe the polls, albeit at short notice.

dfm, slk/rc (AP, dpa)