The referendum went ahead in most areas yesterday, with the constitutional vote postponed until May 24th in only the very badly affected areas.  This came as no surprise to many people inside and outside Burma who view the referendum and planned 2010 election as a shameful attempt by the military to legitimize its 46-year grip on power.

Despite the devastating effects of Cyclone Nargis, over the past week state-run television station MRTV continued to screen the 'Vote Yes' advertisements as normal and teashops across the country were littered with pro-constitution pamphlets and posters.

As previously reported the voting ticket was recently revealed to Kaowao; on one side the boxes marked ‘Yes’ and ‘No’, and on the other side space for the voter's name, address and ID number.