The Proportional Representation (PR) system will be used in the next election to ensure broad representation of parties and ethnic groups, said Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, Chairman of the State Administration Council and Prime Minister during the speech on one-year State responsibilities discharged by the State Administration Council on February 1.
Concerning measures on the sustainability of peace and sovereignty, the year 2022 is of great importance. Coming February 12th will be Diamond Jubilee Union Day and the January 4th 2023 will be Diamond Jubilee Independence Day. As such, it is important to ensure the strengthening of the sovereignty of the State and the fruitful development of the nation. So, we would like to start new steps for the restoration of peace this year. As it has been mentioned in the Five-point Road Map, I have expressed my wish to invite all relevant organizations to talk about peace in my New Year message of greetings in 2022. So, I’d like to add one more that we are always ready for peace, he said.
He continued federalism is a concept to share the authority with regions, states, ethnics and national races in unison, and it is integration as well as sharing of rights. Political parties, including ethnic parties, are representing the people. Hence, they have diversities, and it is necessary to realize the PR system so as to have a wider scale of representation. No matter how different the concepts of federalism are, we have to select the political system in harmony with the country. It is necessary to implement the wish of the majority in democracy as well as to emphasize the wish of the minority. In sharing the three Powers, the power must be shared among the Union, regions and states under the Constitution to enable the regions and states to have the rights of self-administration under the Constitution.
He added as a result of exercising the PR system, ethnic national people would have to get more representation at the legislative Hluttaw as well as would have rights of expression. Moreover, they have to enjoy the right of effectively serving the interests of their regions and ethnic nationals. In building the Union based on democracy and federalism, the Union Election Commission held meetings with political parties and interested persons four times to exercise the PR system for all ethnic nationals from regions and states to enjoy the equal term of rights.
There were 4,648,270 voters without national registration cards in the 2020 election. Hence, the “Pankhinn” project is being implemented as an operation starting from March 3, 2021 to issue household registration and any identity to all (legal citizens) inclusive of the 1982 Myanmar Citizenship Law. Among 3,491,364 people to be registered for the national registration cards, the cards have been issued to 1,905,843 people (about two million) till January 21, 2022, accounting for 55 per cent. The registration period will last for 18 months, he said.
