Sunday, November 07, 2010

Burma holds elections with some groups stating the event wasn't completely free.

Voting has ended (click title to entry - thank you) in military-ruled Burma's first elections in two decades.  Critics say the results were engineered long ago.  The military is widely expected to remain in power, though some analysts say the polls could allow for gradual progress.  Outside journalists are banned from Burma....

...The military-drafted constitution gives it 25 percent of seats in parliament, even before votes are counted.

And the two largest parties, the Union Solidarity and Development Party and the National Unity Party, support the military.

A group of protesters demonstrated against the elections Sunday on the side of a busy highway in Mae Sot, Thailand, on the border with Burma.

Zaw Htunn is one of the protest organizers.

He says the elections held by what he calls the repressive regime are absolutely unfair and not free.  He says the protesters totally reject the results because the USDP is led and controlled by military generals who recently exchanged their military uniforms for civilian suits....

Protester holds opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi's poster outside a public park in Mae Sot, Thailand, 07 Nov 2010