Postal voting set for quake-hit Myanmar, online voting to proceed in Thailand

Metro Manila, Philippines - The Commission on Elections (Comelec) announced that overseas voting will proceed as planned for Filipinos in Myanmar and Thailand, following an assessment of the situation in both countries after last week's deadly and destructive earthquake.

“Nakausap na po natin ang embahada ng Myanmar, ng Pilipinas sa Myanmar, at sinabi, wala naman problema sa infrastruktura. Sila naman ay maayos ang kalagayan,” Comelec Chairman George Garcia said in a chance interview in Pasay on Wednesday, April 2.

[Translation: We have already spoken with the Philippine Embassy in Myanmar, and they said there are no infrastructure problems. Their situation remains stable.]

Myanmar is among the 16 posts that will use automated counting machines (ACMs) for the midterm elections through postal voting.

There are 378 registered voters in Myanmar. Garcia said all ballots for these voters have been printed, along with around 10,000 ballots for Filipinos who will undergo postal or personal voting abroad.

Meanwhile, 77 posts will conduct online voting for the first time, including Thailand, where there are 8,203 registered voters.

“Sa Thailand po, wala naman din tayong problema… And therefore, tayo po ay maging internet voting pa rin sa kanila,” Garcia said.

[Translation: In Thailand, we also have no issues… Therefore, we will proceed with internet voting for them.]

“Paminsan-minsan, sinabi nila meron pa rin silang nararamdaman ng aftershock doon sa lugar na yan. But just at the same time, stick pa rin tayo sa kung ano talaga yung dapat na paraan ng pagboto,” he added.

[Translation: From time to time, they say they can still feel aftershocks in that area. But at the same time, we will stick to the designated voting method.]

On Monday, Garcia revealed that the Comelec was assessing the feasibility of internet voting in Myanmar and Thailand. However, the poll body later clarified that Myanmar has been set for postal voting through ACMs.

More than 2,700 people have died in Myanmar following the magnitude 7.7 earthquake that struck last March 28, causing destruction as far as Bangkok, Thailand. The death toll is expected to rise as search operations continue. The Philippine government has sent a team to assist in relief efforts.