Burma's detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is urging her supporters to monitor the country's November 7 election and report any irregularities.
Speaking through her lawyer Nyan Win, she said members of her now-disbanded party, the National League for Democracy, cannot ignore the election even if they boycott it. Nyan Win spoke to reporters Wednesday, a day after meeting with Aung San Suu Kyi, who is under house arrest.
He quoted the Nobel Peace laureate as saying the election cannot be free and fair without freedom of expression and a free press. He said she suggests that people who wanted to vote for her party should not vote.
The election will take place without the participation of major political figures. It has been widely criticized as a sham aimed at giving a civilian face to military rule.
Aung San Suu Kyi's party won a landslide victory in Burma's last election in 1990, but the military refused to relinquish power. She has been under house arrest for most of the past two decades.
Hundreds of other Burmese politicians are jailed and barred from participating in the poll.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and AFP.