Myanmar’s former junta leader Than Shwe has endorsed his one-time nemesis Aung San Suu Kyi as a “future leader” of the nation, according to his grandson.
Than Shwe, a postal clerk-turned-general, who ran the nation with an iron fist for nearly two decades until 2010, met with democracy champion Aung San Suu Kyi on Friday.
Her party is preparing for power after last month’s massive election win.
The talks mark a dramatic turnaround in fortune for Aung San Suu Kyi, who was kept under house arrest for years by the 82-year-old retired general for leading the democracy movement against his army.
“Everyone has to accept the truth that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi will be the future leader of Myanmar after winning the elections,” Than Shwe was quoted as saying on Facebook on Saturday by his grandson, Nay Shwe Thway Aung.
Daw is a term of respect.
“I will support her earnestly, as much as I can, if she really works for the development of the country,” he added.
Win Myint, a spokesman for Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) party, confirmed the Friday meeting, adding it was the first time the pair had met since 2003.
Aung San Suu Kyi, 70, is barred from the presidency by an army-scripted constitution, but has said she would govern from “above the president” when her party take their seats in the new year.
The NLD scooped up nearly 80 percent of contested seats in last month’s breakthrough election, a massive mandate to govern after a half-century of military rule.
However, the army still holds a strong hand. It retains 25 percent of all parliamentary seats as well as key bureaucratic posts.
The NLD leader has been at pains to urge reconciliation with the army as she eyes a smooth transition to power. Aung San Suu Kyi also met with Burmese President Thein Sein and the army chief last week in the capital, Naypyidaw, with both men reiterating their public commitment to help her new government.
The government has denied rumors that Than Shwe is guiding the pace of reforms from behind the scenes. However, analysts say the meeting between former junta leader and Aung San Suu Kyi is still a major indicator of a peaceful handover of power by a military that has marshaled reforms over the past four years.
Many NLD supporters remain cautious of a military that is renowned for its political chicanery and repressive reflexes. The NLD won a similar share of the vote in 1990, only to see the army annul the result and tighten its grip on the nation for another generation.
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