Regime conducts census training course in Sittwe

By Admin 28 Sep 2024

DMG Newsroom
28 September 2024, Sittwe

Myanmar's military regime has reportedly been conducting a census-taking training course in the Arakan State capital Sittwe since mid-September.

Each trainee from the Ministry of Education is provided with cash assistance to buy fuel for their motorbikes and a K3,000 daily allowance, sources told DMG.

The regime has announced that a nationwide population census will take place from October 1-15 to compile voter lists for an election it plans to hold next year, which critics have derided as a sham exercise in faux democracy.

The regime is conducting 10-day instructor training courses for census-taking in Arakan State's Sittwe, Kyaukphyu, Ann and Manaung townships.

The census-taking course kicked off in Kyaukphyu on September 3.

"The regime has conducted a 10-day course on the 2024 population and housing census in Kyaukphyu. The regime has announced a nationwide population census from October 1-15 to compile voter lists for an election. The regime has also said it will conduct similar courses," said an educational staff employee in Kyaukphyu.

The regime will conduct census-taking training courses for instructors, special training courses for census-taking instructors, and township-level census-taking training courses, said Lt-Col Han Soe, a member of the Kyaukphyu District Administration Council.

A census-taking training course is also currently being conducted in Ann, said a local resident.

"The regime is preparing to hold elections, but the people are not interested [in the election]. Another thing is that since almost all the residents of Ann have been displaced by fighting, only those who support the junta are attending a census-taking training course," the Ann resident added.

Junta boss Min Aung Hlaing has urged people to provide correct data to census takers.

Political analyst U Tun Kyi said the election preparations underway by the regime in Arakan State - where military tensions are running high and active conflict remains a fact of daily life for many - are looking less promising and are likely to face significant hurdles.

"The regime's main priority now is to hold elections. There is very little chance of holding an election in Arakan state. Now that the regime is conducting the census-taking courses in Arakan State, there may be many challenges. The regime is inviting ethnic armed groups to contest the election just to gain political advantage," he said.

The military conflict in Arakan State remains intense and less than half of the state's 17 townships are still controlled by the regime, including Sittwe, Kyaukphyu, Ann, Taungup, Manaung and Gwa, with the rest held by the Arakkha Army (AA).