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YANGON — Myanmar's Union Election Commission has addressed post-election complaints in a transparent manner, The Carter Center said in a statement released today, but the country's new government should address legal and structural issues to make it easier for candidates and citizens to pursue complaints in future elections and to further increase the transparency of the tabulation of results.

Forty-five complaints were lodged with the election commission. The cost of filing a complaint — including the cost of traveling to the capital of Nay Pyi Taw for a hearing — discouraged some candidates and parties from registering complaints. To date, the election commission has issued a judgment in only two cases. (The lack of deadlines for deciding cases limits the potential for effective remedy.)

The Center's observers remained in Myanmar after the historic Nov. 8 election to monitor post-election day developments, including the tabulation of results, the dispute-resolution process and seating of the new government. In most areas the observers visited, tabulation was conducted in a transparent and professional manner. However, results forms were not always made available for public scrutiny in a timely manner, and in several instances, observers were denied access or were restricted in their ability to observe effectively.

The Carter Center offers the following recommendations to the Union Election Commission:

• As possible, minimize additional costs for complainants, including the relocation of hearings to states and regions where appropriate.
• Ensure that cases are heard without delay to minimize the impact on the rights of the complainants and defendants.
• Make decisions available on the UEC website for public review in a timely manner.
• For future elections, the tabulation process should provide for the public availability of all results forms as soon as they are completed to ensure independent verification of results. The process of tabulating results should be fully accessible to accredited observers.

The Center commends the UEC on its post-election review and recommends that the Union legislature place reform of the election laws, including improvement of the post-election dispute system and campaign finance regulation, on the 2016 legislative agenda.

The complete post-election statement, which includes information on campaign finance issues, the concerns of ethnic parties, election-related criminal complaints, and the post-election environment is available .

Translations

Burmese (PDF)

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A not-for-profit, nongovernmental organization, The Carter Center has helped to improve life for people in over 80 countries by resolving conflicts; advancing democracy, human rights, and economic opportunity; preventing diseases; and improving mental health care.  The Carter Center was founded in 1982 by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, in partnership with Emory University, to advance peace and health worldwide.