Yangon: Myanmar’s state election commission announced it is prosecuting the country’s ousted leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, and 15 other senior political figures for alleged fraud in last November’s general election.
Allegations of widespread electoral fraud were the main reason cited by the military for its February 1 seizure of power that toppled Suu Kyi’s government.
Her National League for Democracy party was about to begin a second five-year term in office after its landslide victory in the polls. The army-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party suffered unexpectedly heavy losses.
The action by the Union Election Commission could potentially result in Suu Kyi’s party being dissolved and unable to participate in a new election the military has promised will take place within two years of its takeover.
In May, the military-appointed new head of the election commission said his agency would consider dissolving Suu Kyi’s former governing party for alleged involvement in electoral fraud and have its leaders charged with treason.
Commission Chairman Thein Soe said an investigation had determined that the party had worked illegally with the government to give itself an advantage at the polls.
The new notice from the commission said Suu Kyi, former President Win Myint, other leading figures in her party, and the commission’s former chairman were “involved in electoral processes, election fraud and lawless actions” related to the polls.
Suu Kyi is already on trial or charged in about a dozen criminal cases in which a conviction would almost certainly bar her from running for office again. Several of her top political allies also have been tried or are facing charges. Suu Kyi’s supporters, as well as independent rights organizations, contend that the cases are spurious and meant to discredit Suu Kyi and her party while legitimizing military rule.
