MOSCOW, March 26. /TASS/. Parliamentary elections in Myanmar will be held after the state of emergency is lifted, with the republic's authorities determined to stabilize the internal situation in 2024, Myanmar’s Prime Minister Min Aung Hlaing said in an interview with TASS First Deputy Director General Mikhail Gusman.
"The State Administration Council was formed as a consequence of the fraudulent 2020 elections, so holding free and legitimate elections is our top priority. After the state of emergency is lifted, we will organize new elections, restore the jurisdiction of the National Defense and Security Council, and, under its leadership, hold elections within six months. To that end, it is necessary to ensure that voter lists are compiled properly and that the internal situation is stabilized. We are making every effort to achieve this goal this year," he said.
He also drew attention to the fact that the parliamentary elections held in 2020 "were rigged." "We managed to resolve this situation, but there was a threat of power being seized violently. Therefore, a state of emergency was declared and the duty of public administration was entrusted to us. From that moment on, our first priority was to overcome the vote-rigging ordeal," Min Aung Hlaing summarized.
In addition, the prime minister pointed out that "this period was accompanied by the spread of the coronavirus" and the attention of the authorities was focused on the fight against COVID-19. In addition to this, he said another problem was the economic recession, one of the causes of which was "the ineffective economic governance system that existed since 2018." "We have made every effort to restore the pace of economic development, and we have seen a positive trend every year since 2021," the prime minister emphasized.
On February 1, 2021, Myanmar's military command announced the removal of the country's civilian leadership, including President Win Myint and State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi, as well as the introduction of a year-long state of emergency, which has been extended several times. Army officials attributed the removal of the civilian leadership to widespread fraud, which the military claimed occurred in the November 2020 general parliamentary elections. According to official results, they were won by supporters of the National League for Democracy party, which was actually in power before the military coup.