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Myanmar democracy leader's detention 'truly deplorable' - Annan

Myanmar democracy leader's detention 'truly deplorable' - Annan

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan voiced grave concern today over the conditions under which Myanmar democracy leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is being held, terming it "truly deplorable" and again calling for her immediate release.

"The Secretary-General is gravely concerned about a report he received recently that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the National League for Democracy (NLD), is being held in Insein Jail outside Yangon," a statement issued by a UN spokesman in New York said. "He considers the conditions under which she is being held - incommunicado and without charge - to be truly deplorable."

Mr. Annan urged the government "again to heed the repeated calls of the United Nations and the international community, including the member nations of ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations, to which Myanmar belongs), to immediately release Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and other members of the NLD detained on 30 May; to acknowledge that the people of Myanmar are overwhelmingly in favour of change; and to join hands with all parties, including the NLD, to bring about national reconciliation in Myanmar as soon as possible."