A UN envoy said he was "encouraged" by his meeting yesterday with the junta's two top generals in a bid to secure the release of Myanmar pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
The UN special envoy, Razali Ismail, told reporters that he held a one-hour meeting with Deputy Senior General Maung Aye, the regime's No. 2, in the presence of the junta No. 3 General Khin Nyunt, at a Defense Ministry guesthouse.
"I am encouraged by my meeting today with deputy Senior General Maung Aye in the presence of General Khin Nyunt," Razali said.
"I hope I will be able to fulfill one or two of my objectives of my visit here," he said, but refused to confirm if he was given assurances on Suu Kyi's release.
Asked if he will be allowed to see her, Razali said: "That's all I can say."
He said he was to meet ambassadors of some countries later yesterday before his scheduled departure today at the end of his five-day mission.
Suu Kyi was detained on May 30 following a bloody clash that left at least four people dead and prompted a crackdown on her National League for Democracy party. The Nobel peace laureate's whereabouts remain unknown with the junta refusing to produce her in the public.
Exiled opposition figures in Thailand say Suu Kyi may have received head injuries in the May 30 violence, which they say left up to 70 people dead.
The government, however, says she is unhurt and is in custody in a "safe place."
Before Razali's meeting with Maung Aye, it was expected that he would get a clear answer from the junta on Suu Kyi, according to Hkun Tun Oo, a leader of Myanmar's Shan minority.
The US Department of State says the May 30 violence appears to have been an ambush orchestrated by junta supporters, and that the events suggests the junta has ended efforts at national reconciliation, launched most recently in late 2000 and brokered by Razali in a series of visits.
Offices of her NLD party have been shut and other opposition members detained. Other party leaders are under house arrest.
Suu Kyi's detention has drawn sharp criticism from around the world and threats of more economic sanctions from the US.
However, the junta has remained defiant, Khin Nyunt said over the weekend that Myanmar will continue to strive to become a "peaceful, developed and democratic nation" with or without foreign assistance.
Since the crackdown, Washington has tightened visa restrictions against the Myanmar regime, to cover all officials of the government-linked social organization, the Union Solidarity Development Association, said to have orchestrated rallies against Suu Kyi.
The restrictions previously barred entry only to senior government officials and their immediate families.
The government of US President George W. Bush also said it wants Congress to impose more economic sanctions against Myanmar and was reviewing legislation to prohibit imports from the impoverished country. The US already bans new investments by US companies.
Tight media controls and the remote location of the May 30 clash have made it difficult to confirm independently what happened. The junta blames the NLD for the violence, saying it was sparked when Suu Kyi's motorcade drove through a crowd of thousands of government supporters.
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