BANGKOK: Myanmar’s military rulers released Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi last week in the hopes that biting international economic sanctions would be eased. But can the diminutive Suu Kyi now revive Myanmar’s withered pro-democracy movement?

The answer lies somewhere between the ruling military’s desire to keep power and the continuing cost of being an international pariah. Experts question if Suu Kyi’s release is the first step toward concrete and long-term changes or if it’s window dressing to receive aid from the international community.

The democracy movement’s greatest asset will be the increased visibility of Suu Kyi herself. After 19 months of house arrest, in which her phone lines were cut and she was rarely allowed visitors, she is now rebuilding the hobbled movement and refocussing international attention on the regime. Suu Kyi is now meeting with diplomats and party members at her home and working to revitalize external party supporters.

For her part, Suu Kyi and her aides have taken a less defiant tone after her release unlike the period following her arrest in October 2000. During this time, she provoked a standoff with the regime over its ban on her travelling to meet supporters.

Suu Kyi, the daughter of assassinated independence hero Aung San, says she is committed to an ongoing dialogue with the junta. Though technically free to move about the country, aides say she won’t do anything to risk another detention now.

Suu Kyi did say this weekend in an interview with Oslo-based Democratic Voice of Myanmar that, “my movement is a lot freer. I can go anywhere, and no one is following me. They allow me to meet whoever I want.”

Talks between Suu Kyi and the junta began at the prompting of the United Nations shortly after her latest detention began, but have focused only on preliminaries such as the release of political prisoners. About 160 democracy activists have been freed since 2000.

Suu Kyi is expecting to breach the issue of political power. ”Both sides agree that the phase of confidence building is over,” Suu Kyi said shortly after her release. “We look forward to moving across to a more significant phase.”

Suu Kyi says that she hopes the deteriorating economy will help pry the first real democratic opening since 1990, when the military annulled free elections that Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) won in a landslide.

Though she is publicly opposed to more aid, analysts say she is likely to approve more money for the regime if it makes democratic concessions.

While the NLD opposes development aid, it agrees with humanitarian aid if it is funnelled directly to the Burmese people. “To be so (directly delivered), there should be accountability and transparency (in the handling of the assistance).

Furthermore, the minimum requirements for the channelling of the assistance must be independently monitored,” she said, noting that her party would like to monitor the humanitarian assistance.—Dawn/LATS Service (c) Christian Science Monitor.