Suu Kyi wraps up political trip to northern Myanmar ( AFP ) October 16, 2002


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Suu Kyi wraps up political trip to northern Myanmar

YANGON, Oct 16 (AFP)

Myanmar's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi's latest political trip to the country's north has been extremely successful, her party said Wednesday as the journey drew to a close.

The Nobel peace laureate departed Monday on the four-day trip to the town of Pyay in Pago division, some 180 kilometres (110 miles) north of Yangon, which took in many towns and settlements along the way.

The journey, one of several taken since she was freed from house arrest in May with permission to travel the country freely, had been "very successful and informative", an NLD official told AFP.

On Tuesday Aung San Suu Kyi visited Padaung, a town about 20 kilometres (13 miles) from Pyay and after meeting with party members there she journeyed on to a government dam project, he said.

The party leader and her entourage returned to Pyay where she spoke to some 500 supporters from the town."She spoke words of encouragement and expressed her feeling of sympathy for the problems they continue to face with regard to shortages in electricity and high commodity prices," the party official said."These problems will be solved if we all work together," she was quoted as telling the gathering.

On Wednesday she left Pyay to visit a government irrigation project in nearby Shwe-Daung and visit the NLD office there where more than 200 supporters had gathered to greet her.

The group, which includes NLD vice chairman Tin Oo and 15 members of the party's youth wing, will spend the night at the town of Nat-ta-lin before heading for Yangon on Thursday, he said.

Myanmar's military government repeatedly blocked Aung San Suu Kyi's attempts to travel outside Yangon until a stand-off over a planned trip to the northern city of Mandalay resulted in the opposition leader being placed under house arrest for 19 months.The latest trip is taking place ahead of a visit by UN human rights envoy to Myanmar Paulo Sergio Pinheiro who is due to arrive on Thursday.

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