Leaders of Myanmar's democratic opposition, which was denied power a decade ago after winning a landslide election victory, Sunday vowed to continue pushing for a new parliament to be convened.
The declaration was made at a discreet ceremony held at the headquarters of Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD), marking the third anniversary of the founding of a body to press the junta over the issue.
The Committee Representing the Peoples Parliament (CRPP) was created when calls for parliament to be established fell on deaf ears within the ruling military regime.
NLD vice chairman Tin Oo said the CRPP had been given a mandate from the majority of elected NLD MPs as well as ethnic-based pro-democracy parties to represent them in the absence of a parliament.
"We shall continue to work until parliament is convened according to the wishes of the people," he said in a message read on behalf of CRPP chairman Aung Shwe who was unable to attend the gathering due to ill health.
Aung Shwe's message also said that over the past three years, better understanding and goodwill had been forged between the NLD and the other pro-democracy parties.
"Now that the political climate has improved, we will be able to work in a better environment to achieve our goal," he told some 200 people, including representatives of five ethnic parties, who attended the one-hour ceremony at NLD headquarters in downtown Yangon.
Aung Shwe and Tin Oo were both released from house arrest late last month, as some of nearly 200 opposition figures freed since Aung San Suu Kyi began landmark talks with the ruling generals last October.
The junta has been upbeat about the progress of the secret talks, but observers say it has failed to proceed past the initial "confidence-building" stage designed to build up trust between the sworn enemies.
And they caution that any transition to democracy in Myanmar, which has been under military rule for four decades, will be a year-long process involving fresh elections and the drafting of a new constitution.
Western governments maintain a position of "cautious optimism", saying they want to see concrete results before they considering lifting the heavy sanctions load against Myanmar.
However, the NLD and other opposition parties have welcomed signs of a political thaw in Myanmar, particularly after the junta began releasing dissidents and allowed NLD branch offices around the country to reopen -- YANGON (AFP)
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
