Burma General Elections

Burma's Real power will lie with the President, the Commanderin- Chief and the new National Defense and Security Council.Burma’s election has largely been on the
Parliament, but is fact this is a largely powerless body which will be dominated by the military The run-up to the election The election on 7th November will be the first in Burma for 20 years. At the last election the National League for Democracy, led by Aung San Suu Kyi, won 82 percent of the seats in Parliament, but the generals refused to hand over power.

Salient features:

*Assembly/Parliament with one Upper
House and one lower house
• 14 regional and state assemblies
(Parliaments)
• 25% of seats (110) in People Assembly
(Lower House) reserved for military
• 25% of seats (56) in Upper House
reserved for military
• 25% of seats in state and regional
assemblies reserved for the military
• 1,163 seats available by vote (but voting
banned in at least 6 seats in ethnic areas)
• 37 parties alllowed to participate
• Dictatorship linked parties only ones
which can afford to stand in almost every
constituency
• 2,203 political prisoners unable to take
part
• New National Defense and Security
Council where real power lies – not
Parliament