Yangon –
Myanmar’s junta ended its state of emergency on Thursday after 4½ years, ramping up plans for a December election that opposition groups pledged to boycott and monitors said will be used to consolidate the military’s power.
The military declared a state of emergency in February 2021 as it deposed the civilian government of democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi, sparking a multi-sided civil war that has claimed thousands of lives.
The order gave junta chief Min Aung Hlaing supreme power over the legislature, executive and judiciary — but he has recently touted elections as an off-ramp to the conflict.
