Naypyidaw ‘orders’ destruction of NLD parliamentary records; Nearly 100,000 ‘conscripted’ into military

Naypyidaw ‘orders’ destruction of NLD parliamentary records

Sources inside the military’s Union Election Commission (UEC) told DVB that they were instructed by the regime in Naypyidaw to burn paper documents containing parliamentary records from the National League for Democracy (NLD) party’s administration on Tuesday. The NLD governed Burma from 2016 until it was ousted by a military coup led by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing on Feb. 1, 2021.

A UEC source told DVB on the condition of anonymity that the parliamentary records “have exceeded the prescribed retention period” and that the UEC was instructed to destroy them by fire, as per the regime’s instructions. The regime’s Ministry of Home Affairs reportedly ordered the destruction of all records relating to the 2020 general elections in Yangon Region on Feb. 4.

A regime employee told DVB that UEC staff have been burning paper documents containing 2020 election-related information in eight townships of the capital Naypyidaw since Feb. 4. “No one is allowed to read the documents or take photos of them,” he added. Officials in Yangon Region’s Twantay, Dala, Kungyangon, and Kawhmu townships were “scolded” for delaying the burning of these documents on Feb. 10.

Philippines calls for release of political prisoners in Myanmar

The Philippine government, through its Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), has urged the release of some of the 22,000 political prisoners in Burma as the country marked its 79th Union Day on Thursday. In a statement on Feb. 12, Manila said that doing so would indicate “further gestures of reconciliation” and the regime in Naypyidaw’s openness to initiate inclusive political dialogue in Burma.

“It is our fervent hope that this occasion be marked by the release of more political prisoners,” the DFA stated. The Philippines is the 2026 chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and its Special Envoy on the crisis in Burma is DFA Secretary Theresa Lazaro, who met with regime leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing in Naypyidaw as well as ethnic and political leaders from Burma in the Philippines last month.

“Many in the international community, including the Philippines, look forward to the release of more political prisoners as further gestures of reconciliation and an initial step towards an inclusive national political dialogue, in line with the Five-Point Consensus and the subsequent ASEAN Leaders’ Review and Decision on the Implementation of the Five-Point Consensus,” the DFA added. Read more