warning that the junta could unleash mass-electronic surveillance on polling stations. Myanmar's military seized power in a 2021 coup, sparking a civil war, but is trumpeting elections as an opportunity for reconciliation.

The ruling junta has said the polls, scheduled to start on December 28, are the path to peace. But the vote will be blocked from rebel-held enclaves and monitors are dismissing it as a ploy to disguise continuing military rule. "This military-controlled ballot will be conducted in an atmosphere rife with threats and violence putting the lives of civilians at risk," UN rights office spokesman Jeremy Laurence told reporters in Geneva.

"The growing insecurity and the lack of measures to protect civilians raise serious concerns about the safety of voters who choose or are forced to participate," he added. Rights groups have said the election cannot be legitimate, with democratic figurehead Aung San Suu Kyi deposed and jailed in the coup, and her vastly popular National League for Democracy party dissolved.

Laurence pointed out that the elections were taking place even as the military was "actively suppressing participation". Many major political parties, as well as entire minority groups, including Rohingya, Tamils, Gurkhas and Chinese, have been excluded, he added. (Bssnews)