YANGON, March 30: Myanmar's junta said on Tuesday it would embark on its "roadmap to democracy" on May 17 by opening a national convention to write a new constitution, raising the prospect it will soon free democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
"The temporarily suspended national convention will be reconvened on Monday, May 17, 2004, in Yangon. Invitations will be sent to those attending the national convention very soon," it said in an announcement on national radio.
The brief statement was authorized by Lieutenant General Thein Sein, secretary two in the ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) who is the chairman of the national convention convening committee.
The convention was originally launched in 1993 but collapsed in 1995 when the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) withdrew on the grounds it was unrepresentative.
Myanmar's junta, which is under intense international pressure to introduce democratic reforms, revived the forum in its seven-point road map unveiled last August by newly appointed Prime Minister General Khin Nyunt.
The ruling generals have since been working to boost the credibility of the convention by persuading the nation's many ethnic minority groups to take part. It has also said the NLD will be invited but the party has said it will not make a decision on whether to attend until its leader Aung San Suu Kyi is freed from house arrest, after being taken into detention in May last year.
Political analysts say the convention would be completely discredited if it was held while the democracy icon was still confined to her Yangon residence, and that the ruling generals were very likely to free herbeforehand.
"This is an indication that Aung San Suu Kyi could be released earlier than expected. It could be weeks or it could be days," one seasoned observer said of the announcement of a start date for the national convention.
The event is being held much earlier than expected, with most pundits having tipped July or August at the earliest, and leaves little time for political parties to prepare. -AFP
