Suu Kyi calls for better relations with Myanmar military

Mar 27, 2011, 11:01 GMT

Yangon - Myanmar democracy campaigner Aung San Suu Kyi marked the 66th anniversary of the founding of the country's resistance movement against Japan Sunday with an appeal for better relations with Myanmar's military leadership.

Speaking at a ceremony attended by about 200 supporters, press and Yangon-based diplomats, Suu Kyi said she hoped to work with the new nominally civilian government which is to be installed by the end of March.

The new government, which was chosen in an election tightly controlled by the military last November, is widely seen as an attempt to give the ruling junta a more internationally acceptable civilian face.

Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) boycotted the poll after the junta instituted rules deemed unfair and barred Suu Kyi from running for office.

She was released from house arrest less than a week after the election.

The Nobel Peace laureate said that despite political differences with the junta, she retains respect for the Myanmar military, known as the Tatmadaw.

'The NLD highly regards the Tatmadaw,' she said. 'The Tatmadaw was founded by my father. I personally value and cherish it very much.'

The ceremony marked the 66th anniversary of Anti-Fascist Resistance Day, when Suu Kyi's father, General Aung San, switched sides in World War II on March 27, 1945, to lead a short but successful resistance campaign against Japanese occupation.

She said the occasion was a time to promote unity between the public and the military.

'We also want better relations with the new government,' she said. 'We want to have better relations for the sake of the country.'

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