A Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) official said the party was pleased with the result.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The main pro-democracy party, the NLD, boycotted the poll but other opposition groups have alleged widespread fraud, reports BBC News. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
China praised the ruling generals for the vote, which marked a “transition to an elected government.” But the poll has been widely condemned as a sham.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“This is a critical step for Myanmar (Burma) in implementing the seven-step road map in the transition to an elected government, and thus is welcome,” said foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
He said the vote was carried out in a “steady and smooth manner.”<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The poll is the first in Burma since 1990, when Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy party secured an overwhelming victory but was never allowed to take power.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The junta says the election marks the transition from military rule to a civilian democracy.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has described it as insufficiently inclusive and transparent. Many Western governments say the election was neither free nor fair.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Despite this, some analysts say that \u2014 although deeply flawed \u2014 the election could mark the start of a process of democratization, by giving opposition lawmakers a voice, however limited, in the institutional decision-making process.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
However, Burma Democratic Concern (BDC), in line with their longtime position, has been persistently lobbying international community and saying, \u201cWe don\u2019t need another election in Burma, implement 1990 election results first,\u201d according to the group’s WordPress blog.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The election has sparked fierce fighting in the east of the country between ethnic Karen rebels and government forces, driving an estimated 20,000 people across the border into Thailand.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Residents in the town of Myawaddy said Burmese troops have now pushed back the rebels, who stormed government buildings on Sunday to protest against the election.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Thai officials at the border have declared the northern area of Myawaddy as safe. There are reports of hundreds of Burmese making their way home.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
However, thousands more remain in the emergency shelters set up in the Thai border town of Mae Sot.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
There are rumours that the Karen rebels are regrouping in the jungle.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“People are scared to go back as they don’t really know what’s going to happen,” a Burmese resident in Mae Sot told the BBC.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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