Local residents in Shan State North’s Muse Township, opposite China’s Yunnan province, are saying that they are under pressure and are being threatened by local authorities to vote for the junta-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) given its ‘must win’ policy.

The USDP is using local militia groups to push people to vote for the party saying people who vote for other parties would be imprisoned, a local resident told SHAN.

On 27 September, U Kengmai (50) chief of the 200-strong Mongpaw militia unit was said to have told villagers in its controlled areas to vote for the USDP or their lives would be in danger.

“If we win, we win. And if we don’t win, we must still win,” a villager in Mongkoe quoted him as saying.

U Kengmai is mostly well-known among the local people as a drug lord. Most drug production in Muse and Kutkhai Townships are reportedly run by him and another drug lord U Myint Lwin. And most products to China are transported through his controlled areas, according to businessmen.

He will contest for the state legislature in Muse, Constituency No.2 as a USDP nominee.

“Voters are frightened by his words,” an election watcher from the Sino-Burma border said. “They are worried that if they don’t cast votes for the party, they might be in trouble when the elections are over.”

Many politicians in Shan State say that the USDP is clearly flouting the electoral laws but local authorities have chosen to ignore it and instead are going out of their way to help them gain an advantage over smaller parties.

With regard to criticism and threats, Union Election Commission (UEC) has said that if the complainant has no compelling evidence such as documents, tapes, places, dates and names, the EC would regard the complaints as ‘unfounded allegations’.

Each of the two constituencies of Muse Township has reportedly been designed to have 27 polling stations. Constituency No. 1 is in Man Hio, in the western part of the township and No. 2 is in the eastern part under the control of U Kengmai. The population in the two parts are said to be imbalanced.

“The population in the west is larger and denser in contrast to the east and most people in the east don’t have identity cards,” said an informed resident of Muse.

The Union Election Commission announced on 22 September that the township has over 85,000 eligible voters. According to the junta’s plan, the ensuing elections will not be based on population, but on townships. Some candidates from other parties have also raised concerns that the arrangement may place them before twofold challenges.

“For instance, Mongkoe village tract has seven polling stations, but voters’ number just over 1,000. Homon Quarter in Muse alone has over 9,000 voters, but there will be only three polling stations,” a candidate said.

There are only two main parties contesting in the township, the Shan National Democratic Party (SNDP) and USDP.

The SNDP candidate to contest in constituency No.1 is Nang Ngwe Ngwe while Mai Sam Pu, an ethnic Palaung, will contest for the USDP. And Sai Aung Myint of SNDP and U Kengmai of USDP will be contesting in Constituency No.2.

“Constituency No.2 is where the SNDP is finding it difficult to travel,” a source said.