Idol'Daw Aung San Suu Kyi
YANGON (AFP) – A new Myanmar opposition party that split from Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) vowed Saturday to keep up their idol's fight for democracy in rare elections, despite signs of a spat. The National Democratic Force (NDF), which is made up of former members of Suu Kyi's disbanded NLD, said it would "continue the democracy struggle" after being given permission to register as a party on Friday. Brushing aside recent signs of a row within the opposition, NDF chairman Dr Than Nyein said activists were still devoted to Suu Kyi. "Aung San Suu Kyi is a real idol of democracy," he said. "We will always respect and admire her courage, her belief and sacrifice." The NLD refused to meet a May 6 deadline to re-register -- a move that would have forced it to expel Suu Kyi -- and opted to boycott the vote, which critics say is a sham designed to legitimise the junta's half-century grip on power. There have been signs of friction between older hardline opposition figures and more moderate figures who opposed the decision. "We formed our party with the aim to continue the democracy struggle under the law," Dr Than said. "Meantime, we are also trying to solve the social and economic problems that are happening at the moment in the country." The NDF still needs to prove it has 1,000 members to be eligible to run in the election, but it is thought this will just be a formality for the group. The NLD, which was founded in 1988 after a popular uprising against the junta that left thousands dead, won a landslide victory in 1990 elections but the military rulers never allowed it to take office. Suu Kyi has spent much of the past 20 years in jail or under house arrest.
Category: homepost1
0 comments