The Strategic Initiative Forum (SIF), a coalition of Myanmar organisations, issued a statement condemning the junta’s proposed 2023 general elections on 17 January.

CIF is working to establish a federal democratic union and is made up of the following groups: the General Strike Committee (GSC), the Karen National Union (KNU), the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP), the Women’s League of Burma (WLB), the Democratic Party for a New Society (DPNS) and individuals who truly believe in democratic values and share common political views.

Below is their statement about the proposed elections:

1. The three main objectives of the Peoples' Revolution are to abolish military dictatorship along with the 2008 constitution and to reform the country by establishing a Federal Democratic Union.

2. The impending election, which the military junta is scheming to hold, against the will of the people of Myanmar, could not be a democratic election, and it would create a pathway for the junta to acquire the legitimacy for the serious crimes which they have committed, are still committing, and will without doubt continue to commit in the future. The "election" will most certainly not bring any stability, peace, justice or equality to Myanmar society.

3. Recognition or engagement with the junta's proposed election can only be interpreted as:

• rejection of the objectives of the peoples' revolution which have evolved from the most valuable sacrifices of people.
• permitting the military junta to prolong its tyrannical rule and access to impunity granted by the 2008 constitution.

4. Therefore, we, ethnic revolutionary forces, political parties, and the whole society of Myanmar people must reject the junta's proposed election in all aspects. This sham election is in fact just an event to select the culprits of the country's history.

5. We would like to urge international communities, who are standing together with the Myanmar people in the process of establishing a federal democratic union, including the foreign governments and international organizations, to strongly object and denounce the junta’s deceitfully planned sham election.

6. Major ethnic revolutionary organizations such as Karen National Union (KNU), Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP) and Palaung State Liberation Front (PSLF) have shown their firm stand to reject the stooge-selection scandal, commonly and colloquially known as the junta's election. We would like to call for the other ethnic revolutionary organizations not to accept the junta's planned sham election, and to denounce it.

7. In conclusion, we strongly believe that we will achieve the objectives of peoples' revolution with the unity of all revolutionary forces, political forces and the general public. We, therefore, urge all the revolutionary forces to oppose this stooge-selection scandal of the junta, and march together towards our goal of Federal Democratic Union harmoniously.