Crowds swarmed around Ms Suu Kyi's convoy as she arrived in Kawhmu for her first visit ahead of April's by-election
BBC 11 February 2012
Crowds of cheering supporters in rural Burma have turned out
to welcome opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi on her first campaign stop ahead
of by-elections scheduled for April.
Ms Suu Kyi, who is standing in the constituency of Kawhmu,
was released from house arrest shortly after parliamentary elections in 2010.
Her party won a landslide victory in elections in 1990 but
was never allowed by the military junta to take power.
In all, 48 seats are being contested.
Meanwhile, an activist monk who led an uprising in 2007 has
been released after briefly being detained by the authorities.
Shin Gambira had been taken from a monastery in Rangoon
early on Friday morning, his brother told the BBC.
He was jailed in December 2007 for 68 years but freed last
month as part of an amnesty for political prisoners.
Symbolic importance
Since the military formally handed power to a civilian
administration last year, Burma has made significant changes. It has released
hundreds of prisoners, signed a ceasefire in a long-running insurgency, and
eased restrictions on freedom of expression and trade unions.
Supporters waved the flag of the National League for
Democracy (NLD) as Ms Suu Kyi arrived in Kawhmu on Saturday.
"We warmly welcome mother Suu!" and "Long
live Daw [Aunt] Aung San Suu Kyi!" they shouted.
Ms Suu Kyi spent most of the two decades from 1990 to 2010
under house arrest.
Even if the NLD wins all 48 seats, it cannot threaten the
military-backed government's hold on power. The party boycotted the 2010
elections.
However, April's vote has enormous symbolic importance.
As a result of the changes taking place in Burma, the US has
lifted one of its sanctions to allow the delivery of limited technical
assistane from international financial institutions.
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