UN warns on voter surveillance ahead of Myanmar election

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GENEVA (Reuters) -The U.N. human rights office voiced concern on Friday that the Myanmar junta was pressuring people into voting in an election next month and that electronic voting machines and AI surveillance could help authorities to identify opponents.

International officials have already raised concerns about Myanmar’s phased election from December 28 into January, calling it a sham exercise aimed at legitimising the military’s rule after it overthrew a civilian democratic government in 2021.

The electronic voting machines did not allow people to leave their ballot blank or spoil it, meaning they have to pick a candidate, said James Rodehaver, head of the Myanmar team for Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

“There’s a real worry that this electronic surveillance technology is going to be used to monitor how people are voting,” he told a Geneva press conference, saying that authorities could track if people are voting, and who for.

The military authorities in Myanmar intend “to enable all eligible voters to exercise their franchise freely and fairly in the upcoming general election”, state media reported on Friday. Reuters was unable to reach a junta spokesperson for further comment.

Rodehaver said his team is verifying reports that locals are being forced to attend military training sessions on how to use the electronic voting machines in contested areas.

“After such training, some participants were warned by armed groups not to vote,” he said, saying civilians were caught between the two sides.

OHCHR has also received reports of displaced people being ordered by the military to return to their villages to vote, Rodehaver said.

Authorities have arrested three young people who hung up posters depicting a ballot box with a bullet, he added. Myanmar previously said it has pardoned thousands in order to allow them to vote.

The country has been in turmoil since the coup overthrew the civilian government led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been in detention ever since. Nationwide protests afterwards grew into an armed resistance.

The Trump administration announced that it will end temporary legal status for Myanmar citizens in the United States, claiming they can now safely return, citing the junta’s planned elections as a sign of improvement. OHCHR is urging the United States to reconsider, it said.

Junta spokesperson Zaw Min Tun previously said that the U.S. announcement was a positive sign and citizens abroad were welcome to return to take part in the vote.

(Reporting by Emma Farge; editing by Philippa Fletcher)