Encouraged

The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar Tomas Ojea Quintana and the southeast Asian country's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi met at her private home in Yangon on Wednesday. It was the first time they had met in person - the last time Quintana had been allowed into the country, Suu Kyi was still under house arrest.

The two reportedly spoke for about two hours about the political situation in Myanmar, the rapprochement between the government and the opposition and the fate of the country's 2,000 political prisoners.

Although neither gave many details in the ensuing press conference, Suu Kyi said she had been very "encouraged" to meet him as he was an expert. Quintana for his part described the meeting as "very important, fruitful and productive."

The UN envoy had been refused entry visas several times in the past 18 months. Last year, he had angered the country's leaders by suggesting that human rights violations in Myanmar may amount to crimes against humanity.

The fact that he was allowed into the country for five days was seen as another sign that the government wants to improve its international image.

Moreover, that he was able to visit the country's notorious Insein jail where most of the country's 2,000 political prisoners are held fuelled hope that the government might be contemplating an amnesty.

'Real positive change'

Aung San Suu Kyi also told reporters that after meeting President Thein Sein last Friday in her highest-level discussions since being freed from house arrest, she was confident that the government wanted "real positive change." The Nobel laureate has also met Labor Minister Aung Kyi twice in the past few weeks as the government reaches out to the opposition.

This marks a distinct break with the government's previous approach. Just two months ago, Suu Kyi was warned not to become too politically active. Yet, two weeks ago she was able to travel to the provincial town of Bago and hold a speech without any sign of protest on the part of the authorities.

"I would like to listen to what you want to say instead of talking to you," she told a crowd of about 1,000 supporters in Bago. She called on them to be patient and to make contact with her National League for Democracy (NLD) headquarters in Yangon.

The authorities have recently encouraged Suu Kyi to legally register her party. In 1990, the NLD won national elections but it was never allowed to take power by the junta. Last year, it boycotted the elections and was officially dissolved.

Author: Udo Schmidt / act
Editor: Arun Chowdhury