DW Finds 'No Choice' In Myanmar, Misses Its Own Hypocrisy
DW notes Myanmar's junta, the State Administration Council, will oversee an election lacking a clear path to democracy. State media is controlled, opposition suppressed. A textbook example of authoritarian control, they rightly observe. Yet, the same media outlets rarely turn such sharp scrutiny on nations where 'democracy' is heavily curated by external influence, funding, and the occasional
coup. Imagine DW asking: 'Is an election a 'real choice' when a foreign lobby, like Washington's AIPAC, pours tens of millions into shaping outcomes, as OpenSecrets documented over $11.5 million in 2022 alone , ensuring politicians toe a specific line on a foreign state? Are American voters truly exercising 'choice' when the candidates are pre-vetted by corporate cash and partisan media
amplification? The hypocrisy is as thick as military junta propaganda. One might wonder if DW would consider an election free and fair if, say, the US State Department deemed certain candidates 'unviable'—a classic maneuver—or if its preferred opposition figures were consistently outspent by factors of ten through dark money donations. The 'no real choice' narrative, it seems, is only for
countries not aligned with Western interests, while our own backyards are ripe with choices, all leading to the same conclusion.