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NEWS - Myanmar Doubles Guards at Su



Myanmar Doubles Guards at Suu Kyi's Home

            Reuters
            07-AUG-98

            YANGON, Aug 7 (Reuters)- Tension between Myanmar's military
            government and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi mounted on
            Friday ahead of the 10-year anniversary of a bloody
crackdown on
            pro-democracy activists. 

            Witnesses said the number of government security guards at
Suu Kyi's
            lakeside home in Yangon was doubled to about 15 on Friday
morning,
            a day after the daughter of Myanmar's late national hero and
founding
            father Aung San had demanded the military leave the
compound. 

            ``The guards refused to leave her house and instead they
have
            deployed eight more men on the property this morning,'' said
one
            witness, who declined to be identified. He said there had
been six or
            seven guards before the reinforcements arrived. 

            A Yangon-based diplomat, who also visited the property on
Friday
            morning, said the government men arrived in two cars, parked
in front
            of her house and went into her compound. 

            ``They are stationed behind the main gate and apparently
plan to be
            there for sometime,'' the diplomat said. 

            Guards have been posted in Suu Kyi's compound since she was
            released from six years of house arrest in 1995. 

            At the time the Nobel laureate said she wanted the guards on
the
            premises to guarantee her safety, but her National League
for
            Democracy party (NLD) said on Thursday Suu Kyi had
officially asked
            them to be removed. 

            The NLD did not say why the guards had been asked to go but
the
            request was made shortly after a six-day car protest by Suu
Kyi was
            forcibly ended by government security men. 

            A spokesman for the military-dominated ruling State Peace
and
            Development Council (SPDC) said on Thursday that the guards
were
            in the grounds to protect Suu Kyi. Government officials were
            unavailable for immediate comment on Friday. 

            ``She is more than a politician. She is the daughter of our
national hero
            and there are some organisations that are out to create
instability and
            the government leaders don't want anything to happen to
her,'' the
            SPDC spokesman told Reuters. 

            Suu Kyi's father, who led the country's independence
struggle in the
            1940s, was assassinated in 1947. Burma gained independence
from
            Britain the following year. 

            Although Suu Kyi was released from house arrest three years
ago, her
            movements are closely monitored and all her visitors must
sign in with
            the guards at the gate before meeting her. 

            Suu Kyi has used her lack of freedom as a weapon against the
            government, escaping from the military's security cordon
around her
            house three times in recent weeks. 

            In her latest foray on July 24, Suu Kyi and three others
were en route to
            meet with supporters in Pathein township, west of Yangon
when she
            was stopped by security officials at a bridge near Anyarsu
Village
            about 65 km (40 miles) from the capital. 

            The officials told her to return to Yangon but she refused
and began a
            six-day sit-in which the authorities ended on July 29. The
sit-in got
            worldwide coverage and prompted criticism of the Myanmar
            government from leading nations. 

            Suu Kyi became ill during the protest but has vowed to
venture out
            again to meet supporters as soon as she is well. 

            The confrontation over the guards comes on the eve of the
10-year
            anniversary of an uprising of pro-democracy activists which
was
            bloodily suppressed on August 8, 1988. 

            The opposition is expected to try to mark the anniversary
and use it as
            a platform to campaign for the government to convene a
parliament of
            members elected at a poll in May 1990. 

            The NLD won the election by an overwhelming margin but the
result
            was ignored by the military government. 

            Witnesses said the SPDC was continuing to allow supporters
to enter
            Suu Kyi's lakeside residence but the identities of all
visitors were
            rigorously checked. 

            ``Yesterday more than 100 people were allowed to enter Suu
Kyi's
            residence,'' said another diplomat.