Myanmar coup: Senior military-backed election official shot dead

Authorities said over the weekend that a senior Myanmar military-backed election official was shot by rebels in Yangon. This marked the latest incident when an individual linked to the junta leaders was killed.

The Myanmar military information team said in a statement over the weekend that Sai Kyaw Thi, the deputy director of the Union Election Commission, was shot dead in the Thingangyun township in eastern Yangon on Saturday. Local media reported that Sai Kyaw Thi was shot several times in the chest, head, and neck. The military’s statement immediately pinned the blame on the People’s Defense Forces, the military wing of the shadow National Unity Government made up of the politicians and activists the junta ousted during its coup in 2021.

The killing of Sai Kyaw Thi comes at a time when the Myanmar military continues its bloody crackdown on those who oppose the generals that seized power in the coup. The military has since faced PDF fighters along with armed rebel groups on several fronts, with the PDF targeting officials known or suspected to be aligned with the military.

The junta has tasked the election commission to oversee the holding of new polls, with critics saying that the upcoming elections would not be free or fair. The election commission last month dissolved the National League for Democracy, the party that ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi belongs to, for failing to register to meet the new electoral rules imposed by the military.

Myanmar has been in chaos since February 2021, when the generals seized power from the elected government, forcing the country back into military rule and resulting in protests. The military has carried out a brutal crackdown on the protests, killing hundreds and detaining thousands.

Last week, the junta pardoned over 3,000 prisoners, including 98 foreigners, to mark Myanmar’s traditional new year. The statement at the time did not specify whether those who opposed the coup were included among the prisoners that were pardoned. Myanmar military spokesman Lieutenant General Aung Lin Dwe said the amnesty is a “celebration of Myanmar’s New Year to bring joy for the people and address humanitarian concerns.”