The article describes how fighting has split Pekon in Shan state, where Kayan National Army fighters guarded a displaced persons camp even as polls opened in nearby junta-held areas. Residents say airstrikes and military offensives continued during the election and doubt the ballot will bring peace. The junta says the vote will restore power to the people, but cancelled voting in roughly one in five townships and the pro-military party is poised for a large win, prompting charges the poll is neither free nor fair.
Split Constituency, Split Country: How War Divided Pekon as Myanmar Vote Unfolded
Fighters from Myanmar's rebel Kayan National Army stood guard on a hilltop overlooking a displaced people's camp in Pekon -- as voters went to the polls (-)(-/AFP/AFP)
Fighters from the rebel Kayan National Army stood guard on a hill above a displaced persons camp in Pekon on Sunday while voters cast ballots in parts of the constituency controlled by Myanmar's military junta. The scene in Pekon, in Shan state near the Thai border, underscores the deep divisions carved by a five-year civil war and the limits of the junta's control.
Context
About 90 kilometres (56 miles) from Thailand, Pekon has been split by fighting since the military seized power in a coup five years ago. Hundreds of people live in a makeshift camp of bamboo shelters with plastic sheeting for roofs and walls, one small but vivid example of the millions affected by the country's humanitarian crisis.
Life In The Camp
In the early morning cold, residents huddled over small cooking fires as aircraft continued strikes in the wider area. "While the election is happening, they are still bombing the public by plane," said Simonet, 40, whose breath misted in the chill. "If you ask me if the election will bring peace, I don't think so."
"This isn't a government we chose." — William, displaced camp resident
Control And The Vote
The junta promoted the election as a path to reconciliation and state television broadcast images of polling stations opening in junta-held parts of Pekon. Yet many districts remain outside military control: hundreds of anti-junta groups have carved out enclaves and run parallel administrations, and the junta has cancelled voting in roughly one in five townships.
In areas the junta controls, the pro-military Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) appears poised for a sweeping victory, which critics say undercuts claims the poll is free or fair. "It's impossible for it to be free and fair," said William, 20, another camp resident. "I believe they're holding it just to sustain their power. No one else wants to compete and the people have no desire to vote."
What It Means
The juxtaposition of armed guards over a displaced camp and open polling in nearby junta-held villages captures the contested, uneven reality of the election. For many displaced residents and local observers, the vote — conducted amid offensives and ongoing airstrikes — is unlikely to deliver the reconciliation the junta promises.
Junta Response: After visiting polling stations in Mandalay, junta chief Min Aung Hlaing urged citizens "to work for the good of the nation and to be open-minded." But in places like Pekon, residents say the front lines and the distrust run too deep for the ballot alone to resolve.
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