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Burma's Opposition Leader Calls for Party Unity


Burma's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi speaks during first ever congress of her National League for Democracy party at Royal Rose restaurant in Rangoon, Mar. 9, 2013.
Burma's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi speaks during first ever congress of her National League for Democracy party at Royal Rose restaurant in Rangoon, Mar. 9, 2013.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has called on her National League for Democracy party to unify and end in-fighting.

On the second day of a three-day party conference Saturday, the Nobel Peace laureate urged delegates to elect new leaders who are in tune with this era.

Analysts say NLD has been fractured by a group of elderly veterans in their 80s and 90s and in poor health, who do not want to make way for a younger generation of leaders.

NLD spokesperson Nyan Win told VOA last month that the party intends to address the youth problem during this week's congress, vowing to elect more young people, as well as women, to leadership positions.

The congress is the first in the NLD's 25-year history.

Another issue to be resolved is what role Aung San Suu Kyi will play following the 2015 elections. She has expressed interest in running for president, though the constitution currently bars her from doing so because she was previously married to a Briton.

A presidential run would be a stunning turn of events for the 67-year-old, who spent much of the past two decades under some form of detention because of her activism before being released in 2010.


Some information for this report was provided by AP and AFP.

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