Opposition to aid Suu Kyi's 'non-violent' fight

BURMA’S pro-democracy opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has started legal action against the dissolution of her National League for Democracy party, the first stage in resurrecting her political career following her release from house arrest last weekend.

Leaders of two opposition groups in Burma have said they intended to work with Ms Suu Kyi (65) to oppose the ruling military junta, although they said they would participate in the parliament which emerged from the recent election, which critics say is a sham.

In an interview with the BBC, Ms Suu Kyi said she was seeking a “non-violent revolution”. “I don’t want to see the military falling. I want to see the military rising to dignified heights of professionalism and true patriotism.”

Burma’s military regime, led by senior general Than Shwe, has controlled the impoverished southeast Asian nation since 1962. Most opposition politicians boycotted the election, arguing that to take part would legitimise the regime’s efforts to gain some overseas recognition. Burma has more than 2,000 political prisoners, and human rights activists accuse the army of involvement in forced labour and torture.

Since her release after more than seven years of detention, Ms Suu Kyi has been busy with public appearances. Yesterday she visited a group of people infected with HIV. The challenge for the Nobel Peace laureate is to find a role in the political system. At the back of her mind must always be the threat that her freedom could be taken away again. She has spent 15 of the last 21 years in detention. Her party won an election in 1990 but was barred from taking power. Since her release, she has adopted a conciliatory tone and has offered to hold talks with the government that jailed her, although she conceded finding common ground would not be easy. “I think the most important thing is the will to find a solution. If both sides are really willing to find a solution we will find one,” she said in an interview with Voice of America’s Burmese service.

“We can’t do it if just one side wants a solution and the other is not keen on it. So, what we have to do is try to persuade the military regime that national reconciliation is in everybody’s interest, including theirs.”

As far as the junta is concerned, the election result of November 7th overrides Ms Suu Kyi’s landslide win in the country’s last free elections.

Since she was freed, thousands of people have thronged to see Ms Suu Kyi, showing that she remains popular even though her political mandate has become unclear.

A key factor will be seeing whether she supports an end to economic sanctions, operated by many western countries, including Ireland and other EU members.

For years she has been a supporter of restricting trade with Burma to put pressure on the junta, even though many said only ordinary Burmese suffered from the sanctions and that they helped countries such as China establish strong trade links.