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Army-run Myawaddy media said the military-controlled National
Defence and Security Council extended emergency rule to give the
junta more time to put together population data for voter lists.
The junta has said it will hold an election next year.
The military put the country under emergency rule for a year
when it took power in a February 2021 coup, deposing the elected
civilian government of Aung San Suu Kyi and triggering
nationwide street protests that it violently crushed.
The junta has since extended that every six months, as the
protest movement morphed into an armed rebellion that has
widened and is now posing an existential threat to the generals.
"It is necessary to restore peace and stability because of
ongoing terrorist activities," state-run media said of the
latest extension, referring to the armed resistance.
Last week, all responsibilities of Myanmar's figurehead
president were handed over to junta chief Min Aung Hlaing, after
the nominal head of state was placed on medical leave due to a
prolonged illness.
Min Aung Hlaing has repeatedly promised to hold a multi-party
election, with the general saying in June that polls will be
conducted in 2025.
Previous election timelines have been postponed, citing the
ongoing violence as the reason. Min Aung Hlaing has insisted the
junta does not plan to hold power long.
The military took power after complaining of fraud in a November
2020 general election won overwhelmingly by Suu Kyi's party,
which the party denied. Election monitoring groups found no
evidence of mass fraud.
(Reporting by Reuters Staff; Editing by Martin Petty)
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