Election date gives parties a boost but support still low
August 30 - September 5, 2010
THE announcement that the country’s first general election in 20 years would take place on November 7 has boosted interest in the poll but parties say they are still worried about a low turnout on voting day.
U Nay Myo Wai, general secretary of the Yangon-based Peace and Diversity Party, said the Union Election Commission announcement on August 13 had led to an increase in support – particularly financial – for the party.
“Many donors have come to our office and made donations so we have been able to send our members to the [Ayeyarwady] delta area to do some campaigning,” U Nay Myo Wai said. “This is encouraging for us because as everyone knows we have had financial difficulties. Now the situation has improved.”
“But we still need more interest from the public. We want them to become involved and discuss the election with us.”
The party is now trying to finalise candidates and organise the K500,000 registration fee before the August 30 deadline. “We have some potential candidates lined up,” he said.
U Aye Lwin, chairman of the Union of Myanmar Federation of National Politics, said the announcement “has made people realise it will soon be time to vote and make decisions ... they are becoming more and more interested,” he said. “Most people want to vote for a party that will bring about real democracy.”
But some party leaders said they were focusing much of their campaigning activities on simply encouraging people to vote.
“When we campaigned, we tried to persuade people to vote even if it was not for our party. We explained to them that they should choose the party they believed would make the country stable,” said U Zin Aung, chairman of the Democratic Party for Myanmar New Society.
“If they do not vote, it would indicate that they do not trust the democratic process and possibly do not understand their own rights. I encouraged them to value the opportunity [to vote] and make good use of it.”
The two major reasons for shunning the election appear to be fear and a lack of trust in the new political parties that have formed to contest the election.
“I would not be reluctant to donate to parties but I would not like to become a party member,” said U Soe Min Aung, a 37-year-old taxi driver from Yangon’s North Okkalapa township.
He said it was difficult to distinguish between the parties, many of whom have similar-sounding names, because very few had started campaigning or distributing party documents.
“I think they need to be more transparent and they should interact more with the public, like distributing brochures about their policies and their history and giving speeches. Right now all we learn about parties is through the print media and I do not think it is enough to help us make an important decision like who to vote for,” he said.
“If they want total support from us, they should be more frank with what they are doing and how they are operating.”
U Tin Yu Swe, from Tarmwe township, said his employer, an exporter, had discouraged staff from becoming involved in politics.
“Since I joined my company, I was told not to be involved in political movements or become a party member. In the contract I signed it said the company would fire staff members if they violate that policy,” he said, adding that he planned to vote in the election.
U Than Lwin Oo, who was a member of “a strong party” that competed in the 1990 election, said his attitude to politics had changed as he had gotten older.
“In the 1990 election, I was a university student and single so I was quite carefree and could do what I wanted. That is why I was an active member of that particular party at that time. But now I have a family to take care of so I don’t want to become a member of any party,” said U Than Lwin Oo, the owner of a jewellery business.
Veteran journalist Maung Wuntha, who is also a consultant editor at the recently launched journal Pyi Thu Khit (The People’s Age), said members of the public could play a role outside of voting and being party members.
“They could also become a volunteer in the vote-monitoring process. A party can have five represent-atives at the polling centre but if they are going to contest in a lot of constituencies I expect it will be difficult for them to have enough members for that job. Independent candidates would need those kinds of volunteers more than parties,” Maung Wuntha said.
U Nay Myo Wai said the public seemed to assume that politics was only the preserve of politicians – a view he disagrees with.
“Politicians are also members of the public. They are not born politicians; they are ordinary people just like everybody else,” he said.
“I want to say to members of the public: Do not just rely entirely on the people who call themselves politicians. If you think you can be a suitable candidate [in the election], then go for it,” he said. “It is the peoples’ right. An election concerns everyone in the country, not just politicians.”
