Myanmar's 2025-26 elections, staged by the military, completed the first round of voting in 102 townships on Dec. 28. The second and final phases of voting, in what the U.N. calls a "sham" election, will take place on Jan. 11 and Jan. 25 in 163 other townships (in 265 of Myanmar's 330 total).

Independent election observers refused to lend legitimacy to the military's polls, as they expect the military-proxy party to win. Preliminary results show the USDP winning most seats in parliament across the country.

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An anonymous voter in Yangon shared this story with DVB about her experience voting in the first phase of Myanmar's 2025-26 "sham" elections.

The second and final phases of voting will take place on Jan. 11 and Jan. 25, according to the military regime's Union Election Commission (UEC), which has downplayed complaints from political parties, and independent candidates, stating that its polls were "transparent."

The military-proxy Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), which lost to Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) party in the two previous elections in 2020 and 2015, won 88 out of 96 seats in the Pyithu Hluttaw and 10 out of 18 seats in the Amyotha Hluttaw on Dec. 28, according to preliminary results released by the UEC.

Aung San Suu Kyi has been held in detention by the military since it staged a coup on Feb. 1, 2021. Her NLD party was disbanded by the UEC in 2023 for not re-registering even as the military has jailed its senior members and forced others underground or into exile to avoid arrest and prosecution.

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In 2025, Malaysia dramatically escalated immigration enforcement with Myanmar refugees say ing that uncertainty and fear now dominate their lives.

James Bawi Thang Bik, the chairperson of the Alliance for Chin Refugees (ACR), joined us in the DVB Newsroom to discuss the situation faced by refugees and migrants from Myanmar living in Malaysia.

Watch Newsroom on DVB English News YouTube or Spotify. Listen on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music, Audible, Amazon Music, or wherever you get podcasts. Read James' op-ed for DVB English News.

With the 60-day campaign period ending today (Dec. 26) in the regime elections. The Union Election Commission (UEC) announced that polls will take place in 274 out of Myanmar’s 330 townships with voting to take place in three phases: on Dec. 28, Jan. 11, and Jan. 25, 2026.

The National League for Democracy (NLD) party, which won landslide victories in the 2015 and 2020 elections deemed free and fair by international election observers, was dissolved by the UEC for not re-registering. 

Watch the Myanmar regime's 2025-26 elections special report on DVB English News YouTube or Spotify. Listen wherever you get podcasts.

With Myanmar's pro-democracy movement not fully behind the National League for Democracy (NLD) government, which was ousted in the military coup on Feb. 1, 2021, nor the group representing lawmakers elected in 2020 but ousted in the coup: The National Unity Government (NUG), the military is holding elections to legitimize its rule once again.

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Natascha Schwanke, the DW Akademie Deputy Head and Director of Media Development, joined us in the DVB Newsroom to discuss DW Akademie's work globally and how it supports Myanmar independent media operating in exile. Disclaimer: DW Akademie also supports DVB. Watch Newsroom on DVB English News YouTube or Spotify. Listen on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music, Audible, Amazon Music, or wherever you get podcasts.

Kan Kyi, the lead emcee of hip hop collective Triple Edge and organizer of the annual MOB Party in Chiang Mai, joins us in the DVB Newsroom to discuss music, activism, and the crisis in Myanmar since the 2021 military coup.

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The regime enacted an Election Protection Law in July to prosecute anyone criticizing its 2025-26 polls, which begin on Dec. 28 and continue into January 2026.

The law carries a minimum sentence of three years in prison to a maximum sentence of death, if convicted.

At least 194 people have been charged under this new law so far. Thirty-two have been arrested and five have been convicted, according to DVB data.

Two Yangon residents were sentenced from 42 to 49 years in prison on Nov. 19 for "disrupting the elections."

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Jue Jue Min Thu is the founder of Jue Jue's Safe Space, which offers mental health services for Myanmar communities. She joined us in the DVB Newsroom to discuss her work.

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Part two of an interview with Myanmar documentary photographer Khin Sandar Nyunt in the DVB Newsroom on her book: “Purple Flowers Will Bloom” which includes photographs taken during her work on the frontline in Myanmar’s Karenni State.

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Check out our photos from the book launch in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Myanmar documentary photographer Khin Sandar Nyunt joins the DVB Newsroom to discuss her book: “Purple Flowers Will Bloom” which includes photographs taken during her work on the frontline in Myanmar’s Karenni State.

Check out our photos from the book launch in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Watch Newsroom on DVB English News YouTube or Spotify. Listen on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music, Audible, Amazon Music, or wherever you get podcasts.

Youth Line podcast host Pyartho brings us a story about three LGBTQ+ teachers who refused to work after the 2021 military coup and joined the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM).

Stay tuned to Youth Line podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and ⁠YouTube⁠.

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The mysterious disappearance of Myanmar refugee leader Thuzar Maung and her family from their home in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on July 4, 2023, and their reported re-appearance in detention in Myanmar on Oct. 18, 2025, raises more questions than it answers.

DVB is requesting proof of life from the military regime in Naypyidaw, and for Malaysia to share its police investigation into the family's disappearance it launched over two years ago with the public.

How did five U.N. registered refugees disappear without a trace? And reappear in Myanmar via an undated photo and very little information from the regime in Naypyidaw? DVB is investigating. Stay tuned.

Vicky Bowman, a British former ambassador and the director of the Myanmar Centre for Responsible Business, speaks to the DVB Newsroom about the business climate in Myanmar since the 2021 military coup and her imprisonment in Yangon in 2022. Watch Newsroom on DVB English News YouTube or Spotify. Listen on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music, Audible, Amazon Music, or wherever you get podcasts.

Myanmar’s first-ever mixed martial arts (MMA) World Champion Aung La Nsang, known as the “Burmese Python,” won his last-ever bout before retirement from MMA against Swedish fighter Zebaztian “The Bandit” Kadestam at ONE Fight Night 36 held at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, on Oct. 4.

Read more about Aung La Nsang's final victory on the DVB English News website. Watch DVB English News on YouTube or Spotify. Listen on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music, Audible, Amazon Music, ⁠or wherever you get podcasts⁠.

Former U.S. Ambassador to Myanmar Scot Marciel joins the DVB Newsroom to discuss his four years as America's top diplomat in Yangon and how the relationship between the two countries has changed since the 2021 military coup.

Watch DVB Newsroom on DVB English News YouTube or Spotify. Listen on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music, Audible, Amazon Music, or wherever you get podcasts.

Myanmar journalist, producer, and presenter at Voice of America (VOA), Ei Thant Sin, sits down with the DVB Newsroom from Washington, D.C. to discuss her work covering her homeland from the U.S. and her new job as a host of the Insight Myanmar Podcast.

Watch Newsroom on DVB English News YouTube or Spotify. Listen on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music, Audible, Amazon Music, ⁠⁠⁠or wherever you get podcasts⁠⁠⁠.

Aung San Suu Kyi's son Kim Aris on the power of independent media in Myanmar.

"In Burma. Independent media are more than journalists. They are front line defenders of democracy. They are its active force, its lifeline every single day. They risk their lives to report the truth while others remain silent or worse, stand with tyranny. Soldiers risk their lives on the battlefield, but at least they have the means to defend themselves and fight back. Journalists only have their words, courage, and intellect. For me, independent media have been a lifeline since my childhood. The junta hides every detail about my mother's well-being and what is really happening in Burma. But through outlets like Irrawaddy, DVB and Myanmar now, I've been able to know the truth. Without them, I would be in the dark, just like so many families across Burma and the world, in Burma and other countries. State controlled media is used to feed the public lies and brainwash people. When I have been in Burma and before with memoir growing up in different countries, learning about different cultures, I learnt not only about Burmese traditions, but also about the spirit behind them. One of the most beautiful traditions is offering merit doing a good deeds on birthdays or special occasions. So today, on my birthday, I want to honour that tradition in my own way by supporting the journalists who keep truth alive. Unlike many commercial outlets and mass media that profit from entertainment or those that echo propaganda, independent media give voice to the people. They expose corruption, document abuses and keep the hope of democracy alive. But today they are under attack. Facing arrests, exile, censorship and the constant struggle for funding. Without our support, their voices could fall silent. And with them, so could the truth. This is where you come in. Your support is more than a donation. It is an act of solidarity. Every contribution helps keep a reporter safe, funds investigations and protects the truth from being erased. Together, we can ensure that independent media remain not only a voice for the people, but an active force in Burma's democracy movement. Truth needs allies. Stand with the independent media. Support them today because this is your media. And without them, who knows what is happening in Burma," Kim Aris.

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Aung San Suu Kyi's son Kim Aris speaks to DVB Newsroom host Mon Mon Myat about his mother's deteriorating health conditions in prison, where she's been held incommunicado since the Myanmar military coup on Feb. 1, 2021. Read Kim Aris' statement regarding Aung San Suu Kyi's heart condition on DVB English News.

Watch Newsroom on DVB English News YouTube or Spotify. Listen on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music, Audible, Amazon Music, ⁠⁠or wherever you get podcasts⁠⁠.

Yasmin Ullah, the co-founder of the Rohingya Maiyafuinor Collaborative Network, joins us in the DVB Newsroom to discuss her work empowering Rohingya women, and advocating on their behalf, from the refugee camps they've ended up in since fleeing genocide in Myanmar.

Watch Newsroom on DVB English News YouTube or Spotify. Listen on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music, Audible, Amazon Music, ⁠or wherever you get podcasts⁠.