NEWS - Focus-Suu Kyi Road Protest T

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Focus-Suu Kyi Road Protest Turns up Myanmar Heat

            Reuters
            13-AUG-98

            YANGON, Aug 13 (Reuters)- Myanmar opposition leader Aung San
            Suu Kyi sat in a minivan on a country road doing nothing on
Thursday,
            but drew world attention to her campaign for democracy and
human
            rights. 

            The 1991 Nobel Peace Prize winner, a senior member of her
National
            League for Democracy (NLD) and two drivers were still in the
vehicle
            on a small wooden bridge over a creek near Anyarsu, 32 km
(20
            miles) west of Yangon by late afternoon. 

            The four were stopped there by police on Wednesday on their
way to
            see supporters in Pathein, 190 km (120 miles) west of the
capital. The
            trip was a repeat of a visit in late July that led to a
similar six-day
            standoff that was ended forcibly by government security men
on July
            29. 

            ``She has not spoken to anyone and has all the windows
rolled up,''
            said a spokesman for the military government. ``I don't want
to
            speculate on how long she intends to stay there.'' 

            The government had provided a medical team and security ``in
case
            she and her companions choose to stay by the roadside.'' 

            The military have asked Suu Kyi and her companions to return
to
            Yangon, saying it is not safe on the road. 

            But the NLD rejected this on Thursday, saying ``banning them
from
            travelling on the pretext of security is not logical.'' 

            An NLD statement said Suu Kyi was making the trip ``to
encourage
            the NLD elected representatives.'' 

            Suu Kyi's latest trip has intensified pressure on the
country's military
            rulers and drawn more attention to the NLD's demand that the
            government convene a parliament by August 21 of members
elected
            at polls in May 1990. 

            The NLD swept those elections. But the military government
ignored
            the result and has rejected demands for democracy. 

            A Japanese Foreign Ministry official told Reuters in Tokyo
Japan was
            closely watching Myanmar's treatment of Suu Kyi. 

            ``We are worried that things could escalate,'' he said. 

            ``The recent stand-off between Aung San Suu Kyi, in which
her
            freedom to travel was limited and she was forcibly taken
back to her
            home, was a violation of her freedom,'' he added. 

            Eight nations, including Japan and the United States, began
a
            concerted action on Wednesday to press Myanmar to lift
restrictions
            on Suu Kyi and open a dialogue with the NLD. 

            International pressure on the Myanmar military was stepped
up
            Thursday as a U.S. lawmaker headed for Asia to try to secure
the
            release of 18 foreign activists detained in Yangon on Sunday
for
            distributing pro-democracy leaflets. 

            New Jersey Republican Representative Chris Smith, chairman
of the
            House Sub-Committee on International Operations and Human
Rights,
            flew to Bangkok vowing to ``make every effort'' to get into
Myanmar
            and help secure their release. 

            ``The purpose of my trip is to verify the safety and help
secure the
            release of all 18 detainees,'' he said. 

            Myanmar has not said if it will prosecute the foreigners--
six
            Americans, an Australian, three Thais, three Malaysians,
three
            Indonesians and two Filipinos-- or deport them. 

            Government-run newspapers have accused the activists of
being part
            of a plot to destabilise the country and said the
authorities would take
            ``necessary actions against them.'' 

            The government says the legal process is being prolonged
because
            ``a very few (of the activists) are uncooperative.'' 

            Thai Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan said Thailand would not
press
            Myanmar to release the detainees because it did not
interfere in the
            affairs of other countries. 

            But he gave his moral support to the detainees, saying: 

            ``As a democratic country we also praise and support anyone
who
            acts in favour of democracy and human rights.'' 

            The political deadlock in Myanmar hit the country's
currency, the kyat,
            which fell to record lows on Thursday of 384 to the dollar
from its
            previous low of 380 on Wednesday, dealers said. 

            This is the fourth time Suu Kyi, daughter of independence
hero Aung
            Sang, has tried to visit supporters in recent weeks. 

            Released from six years of house arrest in July 1995, Suu
Kyi is
            severely restricted in her movements by the military. 

            She and her companions appear better prepared this time than
on
            their trip in July. Their van is full of food and water and
the trip looks as
            if it is well planned, local sources said. 

            Suu Kyi became dehydrated during the trip in July and spent
several
            days recovering but vowed to leave again when she was well.