Manaung: People in rural Arakan have opposed the Union Solidarity Development Party (USDP) by hanging handwritten posters on several trees in their village when their leaders visited the village to mobilize support for the party, said a village elder.

He said, "We were informed through the village chairman that some leaders of the USDP in Manaung Township would come to our village on 15 August to mobilize people to support the USDP. Before they arrived in our village, some villagers made handwritten posters and stuck them on many trees in the village."

The incident occurred in Thik Pon, a village of 1,000 households on Manaung Island in Arakan State, when USDP township leaders led by U Maung Myin, General Secretary of the Manaung Township USDP, visited the village on 15 August.

"On the posters, the villagers wrote, 'Don't Need USDP and Don't Need NUP' in Burmese. When the authorities saw the posters on several trees in our village, they were angry with the villagers and left the village," he said.

The National United Party (NUP) is the successor of the former Burma Socialist Programme Party led by the late General Ne Win, and is a close partner organization of the USDA.

After the incident, U Maung Myin filed a complaint with the police station in Manaung, and a police team led by Inspector Nyan Tun came to the village to inquire about who made the posters.

"The police officer asked us many questions about who made the posters and who stuck the posters on the trees. But we replied together that we did not know who made the posters. Afterwards the police team left our village," the source added.

The election is scheduled to be held on 7 November, but no other political parties have campaigned to contest in Manaung Township except the USDP and NUP. The two parties are gearing up their campaign for the election in the township.

Similarly, an anti-election campaign also took place in Kyauk Pru Township in Arakan State recently, with leaflets and posters urging people to oppose the forthcoming election.

The military authorities have beefed up security in some townships, including Manaung and Kyauk Pru, after the poster campaign against the election took place.