Myanmar’s military government launches a census seen as a way to gather information about opponents

Associated Press

BANGKOK (AP) — A nationwide census has been launched by Myanmar’s military government, which says it will be used to compile voter lists for a general election promised for next year, even though much of the country is engulfed in civil war. Census takers, most of them schoolteachers and local administrative workers, began going door-to-door in the capital, Naypyitaw, accompanied by soldiers and police. A group that leads the struggle against military rule, the shadow National Unity Government, has advised people to use “caution” in complying with the survey, and pro-democracy guerrillas have warned that those who help collect information will face reprisals. The military government is widely seen as hoping the polls will legitimize its rule, which began after it seized power in 2021.