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Canada condemns decade-long detention of Suu Kyi

OTTOWA: Canada on Friday condemned Myanmar’s detention of Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel peace laureate and opposition democracy leader held under house arrest for 10 years, and demanded her immediate and unconditional release.

“Canada reiterates its call for Burma (Myanmar) to immediately and unconditionally release Aung San Suu Kyi and the members of her party,” Foreign Minister Pierre Pettigrew said in a statement.

“For most of the past decade and a half, Aung San Suu Kyi has been detained under house arrest by the Burmese authorities. When these periods of detention are viewed cumulatively, October 24, 2005, marks the completion of her 10th year of detention,” Pettigrew noted.

Myanmar, which has been under military rule since 1962, refused to recognise the 1990 election victory of Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy and has detained many of the NLD’s officers over the years.

The Canadian foreign minister urged the Myanmar regime to recognise the 1990 election results and lead the country towards democracy.

“The Burmese authorities should also abandon their ongoing efforts to entrench and legitimise military rule, and instead recognise the 1990 national election results and take steps to initiate genuine democratic reform,” he said.

“The people of Burma have languished far too long under authoritarian rule, and continue to suffer human rights abuses.” afp

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