Military stops Suu Kyi's supporters

[nin@xxxxxx]

Reply-To: "Dr. Khin Ni Ni Thein" <nin@xxxxxx>
Subject: Military stops Suu Kyi's supporters from attending her birthday party 

   RANGOON, Burma (AP) _ Military police prevented about 100
supporters of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi from visiting
her home to celebrate her 52nd birthday Thursday.
   About 20 of Suu Kyi's relatives and aides, however, were allowed
into her compound for a quiet ceremony in which she offered food to
five Buddhist monks, a traditional merit-making ritual.
   Suu Kyi has been under semi-house arrest since last September,
when the military sealed off her home to prevent a congress of her
political party and stop her from giving weekend speeches to the
public.
   Since then, they have granted only limited access to the 1991
Nobel Peace Prize winner.
   With riot police lurking in a truck nearby, more than 100 of Suu
Kyi's supporters gathered at the office of her political party, the
National League for Democracy, near the golden Shwedagon Pagoda.
   Wearing the trademark collarless, orange jacket of the NLD, they
heaped elaborately wrapped gifts on a table inside the office.
   Many hoped Suu Kyi, who is recovering from a fall last month in
which she hurt her back, would leave her home and join them.
   ``Since we cannot go to her house, we celebrate her birthday
here and we all wish for her health and success,'' said Hla Mying,
54, an NLD member.
   An aide at Suu Kyi's home said that if the Nobel laureate
couldn't come to the party office, she would send Tin Oo and Kyi
Maung, the party's vice chairmen, to greet the supporters.
   The military government had no announcement on the birthday but
noted in a statement that Than Kywe, 71, elected to parliament
under the NLD banner in 1990, had resigned from the party. The NLD
won the elections, but the ruling junta never allowed parliament to
convene.
   The government claimed Than Kywe had resigned over differences
in the party. The claim could not be confirmed, but party members
come under great pressure to give up politics.
   This was Suu Kyi's second birthday celebration since her release
from six years of house arrest in July 1995. Last year, before the
military blockaded her home, streams of supporters filed in and out
of her compound delivering gifts and wishing her well.
   On Thursday, in cities around the world such as Bangkok, Tokyo
and New York, supporters held protests and celebrations to mark her
birthday. They have also designated her birthday as Burma Women's
Day, to spotlight women's contributions to the democracy struggle.
   Outside the Burmese Embassy in Bangkok, about a dozen Burmese,
Thai and Western protesters donned Suu Kyi masks and paper shackles
and held a banner that read ``Women's Rights, Human Rights for
Burma.''
   Police have taken a hard line against Burmese democracy
protesters since Chavalit Yongchaiyudh was elected Thailand's prime
minister last year. But they did not intervene until the
demonstrators tried to hand out leaflets.
   A Burmese Embassy official was seen photographing the
protesters.
   Democracy activists have said that since Chavalit became prime
minister, Thai and Burmese military intelligence personnel are now
working together to harass Burmese exiles.
   ``Burmese women have not been very visible in the struggle, but
they have always been there,'' said Debbie Stodhard, one of the
protesters.
   In fact, Burmese women have been very visible in the democracy
movement. The NLD has many women members, and large numbers of them
would show up at Suu Kyi's compound for party meetings before the
government imposed its restrictions.
191303 jun 97