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YANGON, April 30: Military-ruled Myanmar was abuzz with speculation on Tuesday that pro-democracy opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was set to be freed after 18 months in house arrest following a deal with the ruling junta.
The release of the 56-year-old Suu Kyi, winner of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize, is one of the top demands of the international community. She has been kept confined to her lakeside Yangon residence, with her telephone line cut, since September 2000.
A source close to the ruling junta said the government was set to announce the release of Suu Kyi and a deal under which she would cooperate with the junta in administering humanitarian work in fields such as health and education.
“It will be more than the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and some other political prisoners. It will be a breakthrough in Myanmar politics,” the source said.
Razali Ismail, the UN special envoy to Myanmar, ended a four-day visit to the country on Friday saying he expected a breakthrough soon in the peace process.
On Tuesday, Razali told reporters in Kuala Lumpur that the expected major announcement could include the release of political prisoners or further freedom for political activities.
“The one that everyone expects is the release of Aung San Suu Kyi,” the Malaysian diplomat said.
“Be patient. I think something big will happen.”
PATIENCE WEARING THIN: The government began secret talks with Suu Kyi in October 2000, a move hailed as a breakthrough. But since then no concrete progress has been announced.
The release of Suu Kyi is widely regarded as the single most important step the junta could take to show the increasingly impatient international community that it is considering political change.
Myanmar Labour Minister Tin Win told a news conference at the weekend that the government would make a major announcement “in a few days”. Asked what progress had been achieved in the talks, he said: “Just wait and see.”
Witnesses said a team of municipal workers were cleaning the road outside Suu Kyi’s home on Tuesday morning and repairing potholes.
Diplomats in Yangon confirmed speculation was rife that Suu Kyi would be freed, but pointed out that similar rumours have circulated before.
“Certainly the government has to announce something,” one Western diplomat said. “It’s hard to see how it could fail to include Suu’s release. But we’ve been disappointed before.”
Suu Kyi, the charismatic daughter of assassinated independence hero Aung San, was held under house arrest from 1989 to 1995. She was placed back under house arrest in 2000 after she embarrassed the government with several high-profile attempts to challenge travel restrictions that confined her to Yangon.
Her release in 1995 did not herald any political change. But analysts said if she had indeed agreed to limited cooperation with the ruling junta, this would be a major shift in her stance.
Previously she has refused all overtures from the military to work with them.
Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) won Myanmar’s last election in 1990 by a landslide, but the military government refused to hand over power. Myanmar has faced international isolation and economic sanctions over its human rights record and its treatment of Suu Kyi and the NLD.—Reuters
