Purple fingers, poll cards mark change
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ALL through the day voters emerged onto Myanmar's streets, patiently waiting under a tropical sun in snaking queues.
Among them supporters of Aung San Suu Kyi’s pro-democracy party hope their mark on the ballot will overhaul a country cramped for decades by ulcerous junta rule.
Some smiled, others wore a more determined look as they voted in an election many have craved for a generation but almost dared not believe would happen.
“We want the system to change,” said Khin Myint Myint, 65, a retired university teacher, polling card in hand as he waited to vote in the wealthy Yangon township of Bahan.
Satisfaction radiated from those who emerged from the polling stations, the purple tips of their little fingers raised in triumph after being inked to indicate they had voted.
“I’m very happy. Can I say who I voted for? Of course it was the NLD,” said Swe Swe, a beaming 69-year-old housewife, who like many in Myanmar was sporting an elegant longyi.
The early queues, which were seen across the country – from the mountainous north to the flat southern delta – pointed to a strong turnout, something observers say will likely benefit the NLD.
