UN Calls for Return to Democracy as Myanmar Army Dissolves Aung San Suu Kyi’s Party

Guwahati: The military-run election commission announced on Tuesday that the party of the country’s deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi would be disbanded for failing to re-register in accordance with the new electoral rules, prompting a plea from the UN for a restoration to democracy in Myanmar.

While speaking to the media, Spokesperson for the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Stephane Dujarric said, “I think this is another step in the direction that we would not like to be going into. We want to see a return to democracy in Myanmar. We would like to see the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and other people who continue to be detained, and we will continue to work towards that.”

The National League of Democracy (NLD), one of 40 political parties, was disbanded following Aung San Suu Kyi’s party for not registering in time for an election as required by the ruling military.

Significantly, the Burmese military handed political parties two months in January to re-register under a stringent new electoral legislation before new elections.

The opposition responded by claiming that the elections would not be free or fair.

Aung San Suu Kyi, the country’s deposed leader, was given a 33-year prison term by a military tribunal in Myanmar in December 2022 after being found guilty of corruption and given an additional seven years in prison.

Suu Kyi was found guilty of corruption by the court in connection with the acquisition, maintenance, and renting of a helicopter for use in state operations, including rescues and emergencies.

According to the report, she now faces a total sentence of 33 years in prison, including three years of hard labour, and she could spend the rest of her life in prison.

According to reports, Suu Kyi has already been convicted of a number of crimes, including electoral fraud and accepting bribes.

Her attorneys claimed that she had refuted all of the accusations and that they were politically motivated.

Since the military overthrew her democratically elected government in a coup in February 2021, Myanmar’s former leader has been detained at her home.

In relation to the purchase, maintenance, and renting of a helicopter for use in emergency situations and state affairs, including as rescue missions, the court found Aung San Suu Kyi guilty of corruption.

Aung San Suu Kyi now faces a 33-year prison sentence total, along with three years of hard labour.

According to a news report, Aung San Suu Kyi is being detained in solitary confinement at a jail in Naypyidaw, and her trials have been held in secret. Aung San Suu Kyi had previously been found guilty of a number of crimes, including electoral fraud and accepting bribes.

She has refuted each and every accusation brought against her, and her attorneys have asserted that these allegations are all politically driven. Importantly, Aung San Suu Kyi was jailed by the Burmese military when the military overthrew the government in February 2021, sparking widespread unrest.

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) demanded the military junta to free all political prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi and former President Win Myint in its decision on the nation of Southeast Asia last week.

The UNSC issued its first-ever resolution on the situation in the Southeast Asian nation and demanded that the Junta in charge of Myanmar release Aung San Suu Kyi. Since the country has been ruled by the military since February 2021, the 15-member Council has been unable to come to a consensus on anything substantive regarding Myanmar for many years.

As China, Russia, and India abstained, the UN Security Council’s resolution calling for an immediate halt to the violence in Myanmar received support from twelve members. Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US representative to the UN, stated that this resolution just constitutes a first step in putting an end to the slaughter and that “much more must be done.”