DFA chief: Without the opposition, Myanmar polls a farce

Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Alberto Romulo said this year's elections in junta-ruled Myanmar would be considered a sham if opposition members would not be allowed to participate in the process. In an interview on Monday, Romulo said the elections would be a farce if opposition members, including jailed democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi would not be allowed to participate in the Myanmar election, the first since 1990. "All the parties should be there and not only should be there but they should be allowed to campaign and their votes should be counted. You know what democracy is all about," Romulo said. Romulo has been very vocal about his concerns on the political developments in Myanmar, repeatedly calling for the release of Suu Kyi and other political detainees and their participation in the elections. Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy (NLD) party won the last election by a landslide but was never permitted to take office. The ruling junta has imposed a law banning Suu Kyi from participating in the polls. Suu Kyi’s party has disbanded and opted not to take part in this year's election, saying it will be a sham. Suu Kyi was convicted last year for violating the terms of her house arrest after an American man illegally swam across a lake to her waterfront villa. The man reportedly hid in her compound for two nights. Suu Kyi was sentenced to three years of hard labor but the court "mitigated" the sentence to 18 months of house arrest. Suu Kyi, 63, has spent more than 14 of the last 20 years in detention. Doubts on credibility of polls The United States and the European Union, Myanmar’s staunchest critics, voiced doubts about the credibility of the scheduled elections in the military ruled-state, formerly known as Burma. They have been urging the junta to let the opposition and ethnic minorities become involved in the elections. The ASEAN’s standing policy of non-interference in their members’ domestic affairs has constrained efforts to enforce the protection of human rights in Myanmar. The ASEAN has also been criticized for not exerting pressure on Myanmar’s junta to enforce democracy and institute reforms. The members of the ASEAN are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. Amid opposition from Western countries, the ASEAN supported the entry of Myanmar into the group as its tenth member in 1997. — VVP, GMANews.TV