Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said on Tuesday that the regime’s 2025-26 elections set to begin on Dec. 28, and continue on Jan. 11 and at a later undecided date, cannot be considered legitimate unless there’s “constructive dialogue.”
“Peace, security and inclusive participation must be the basis of the upcoming elections so that the outcome is credible and reflects the will of the Myanmar people,” Balakrishnan wrote on Nov. 4 in response to a question raised by a Singapore Member of Parliament on political developments in Myanmar.
Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) government was ousted in a military coup on Feb. 1, 2021. Since then, the State Counsellor and President Win Myint have been held incommunicado by the regime, which seized power during the 2021 coup.
The NLD was dissolved by the regime’s Union Election Commission (UEC) in March 2023 for not re-registering post-2021 coup.
The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) has documented that at least 30,000 people have been arrested in connection with anti-coup activities since 2021, with around 22,600 still imprisoned, including more than 11,300 who have been sentenced.
Balakrishnan said Myanmar’s situation “continues to be dire almost five years since the coup,” describing the country as “effectively fragmented” with conflict between regime and resistance forces occurring nationwide.
He added that the solution for the Myanmar’s crisis requires political dialogue involving all key stakeholders.
Singapore wants Myanmar to abide by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Five Point Consensus, a peace plan agreed to by regime leader Min Aung Hlaing in April 2021 but not implemented upon his return to Myanmar.
The plan calls for an end to violence, the release of all political prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi and Win Myint, and immediate humanitarian access to communities impacted by the conflict.
“Ultimately, the solution must be Myanmar-owned and Myanmar-led,” said Balakrishnan.
Malaysia Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan said that incidents of violence against civilians in Myanmar have decreased since Malaysia became the 2025 ASEAN chair in January.
Malaysia handed over its chairmanship of ASEAN to the Philippines, bypassing Myanmar in its alphabetical order, on Oct. 28. Singapore will become ASEAN chair in 2027.
