NEWS - Diplomats Meet With Myanmar

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Subject: NEWS - Diplomats Meet With Myanmar Leaders

7/7/99 12:38:43 PM Eastern Daylight Time

Diplomats Meet With Myanmar Leaders

 .c The Associated Press

 YANGON, Myanmar (AP) - A European Union delegation met Wednesday with
Myanmar's embattled opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, in hopes of
fostering dialogue with the military government and breaking the
country's political impasse.

The four diplomats, led by Santi Fedorow of Finland, also held talks
with representatives of the country's ethnic minorities. The diplomats
discussed the political and human rights situation in Myanmar, and the
status of ethnic nationalities, one minority leader said on condition of
anonymity.

Diplomats confirmed that the delegation had met Suu Kyi, winner of the
1991 Nobel Peace Prize, but gave no details.

On Tuesday, the European envoys met Lt. Gen. Khin Nyunt, a top figure in
the government, and Foreign Minister Win Aung for nearly two hours. No
details of those talks were disclosed.

Suu Kyi spent six years under house arrest from 1989-95 for her role in
trying to restore democracy to the Southeast Asian nation. Since then,
her movements have been heavily restricted by the military government in
Myanmar, also known as Burma.

The EU has imposed sanctions against Myanmar's ruling State Peace and
Development Council to protest its repression of democracy and human
rights.

A dialogue between the government and the opposition could help the EU
soften its stand against Myanmar and remove an obstacle to better
relations with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, of which
Myanmar is a member.

Suu Kyi, leader of the National League for Democracy, has long sought a
dialogue with the military government, which refuses to meet her.

In a recent interview with Asiaweek magazine, Suu Kyi made a significant
concession, saying she would no longer insist on participating from the
start of negotiations.

The NLD overwhelmingly won parliamentary elections in 1990. The
military, surprised that the parties it had backed lost, never allowed
the civilian parliament to convene. It has ruled Myanmar since 1962.

AP-NY-07-07-99 1238EDT