Britain wants to see Suu Kyi installed in power

Wednesday, 26 September , 2007, 01:40

London: The British government called for opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi to be installed in "her rightful place" as the leader of Myanmar.

Foreign Secretary David Miliband, speaking at the Labour Party congress in Bournemouth, southern Britain, said it was "brilliant" to see Suu Kyi "alive and well" outside her home in Yangon last week.

"I think it will be a hundred times better when she takes her rightful place as the elected leader of a free and democratic Burma," Miliband told delegates, calling Myanmar by its old name.

Earlier, Prime Minister Gordon Brown called for "immediate international action" - including discussions at the UN Security Council - to prevent a threatened military crackdown on protesters in Myanmar.

Brown urged the military regime in Yangon to "exercise restraint".

"We have all been watching with concern the unfolding human tragedy in Burma, which requires immediate international action," Brown wrote in letters to the European Union (EU) and the United Nations (UN).

"Violent suppression of the demonstrations would be a tragedy and another missed opportunity for Burma," wrote Brown. He called on the United Nations to encourage Myanmar's key regional neighbours to urge the authorities in Yangon to "pursue reconciliation".

Brown made his appeals in letters to the current holder of the presidency of the European Union, Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates, and United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon.

The European Union (EU) also Tuesday urged Myanmar government to exercise "maximum restraint" in handling the current street protests.

"We are very concerned by the situation in Burma (Myanmar) following what I stress are peaceful protest by Buddhist monks and many people from civil society," said Amadeu Altafaj Tardio, a spokesman for the EU's development and humanitarian aid commission.

"So far no violence has been used to quell the peaceful demos. However, we are also concerned by an increasing military presence in the streets (that has become) more and more visible. We are therefore urging all stakeholders, particularly the government, to exercise maximum restraint," Altafaj Tardio added.

His comments were echoed by the EU's foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, who called on Myanmar regime to push through political reforms, release political prisoners and grant "fundamental rights and freedoms" to its citizens.