15 | NO CREDIBLE ELECTION OBSERVERS WILL BE ALLOWED IN THE JUNTA’S ELECTIONS invited23” to participate in the elections staged by the junta. However, the groups invited are neither independent nor recognized election monitors. These include the Cambodian People’s Party of strongman Hun Sen, as well as representatives from Russia, Belarus, and India, governments that supply weapons to the junta. Russia, Belarus, and India are members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), which has a track record of rubber-stamping controversial elections. China, a major supporter of the junta’s election plans, is also a member of the SCO. Laos is reportedly considering sending observers as well. The Election Commission of Thailand is expected to send representatives under a bilateral relationship it maintains with the UEC. On the other hand, credible international observer organizations have not been invited. ANFREL, the only international group to have observed elections in Myanmar in 2015, 2017, 2018, and 2020, will not seek accreditation or engage with the junta’s election commission. Similarly, none of the domestic election observation groups contacted by ANFREL are planning to monitor the junta’s elections. The junta will likely provide accreditation to friendly civil society organizations to claim participation from election observers. One observer group based in Chin state has already expressed its intent to observe the junta-staged elections. However, genuine election observation is impossible, as anyone saying that the elections are not free, fair, or transparent could be sentenced to seven years in prison under the junta’s “election protection law”. No established domestic or international election observation group will participate in the junta’s election. Countries supporting the junta will send representatives to legitimize the electoral process, but no independent scrutiny will be permitted by the UEC. 23 Global New Light of Myanmar, “National Defence and Security Council convenes Meeting 3/2025”, 1 August 2025, https://www.gnlm.com.mm/national-defence-and-security-council-convenes-meeting-3-2025/ 63