Burma’s main opposition party the National League for Democracy (NLD) on Monday decided to enlarge its central executive committee (CEC) inducting nine more members to the existing 11.
Win Tin, a CEC member said the decision was taken on Monday during the committee meeting, attended by seven of nine CEC members.
While detained party General Secretary Aung San Suu Kyi, Vice-Chairman Tin Oo, ailing Chairman Aung Shwe and Secretary U Lwin, could not attend the meeting, the decision was in keeping with their discussions in December.
Detained party leader and Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi in December was granted rare permission to meet three of her party’s aging leaders – Aung Shwe, U Lwin, Lun Tin – where they discussed reforming the party.
“We agreed to expand the party central executive committee today. But we are yet to issue a statement on it as there is some official work still to be done. We also need to notify the authorities of our decision,” Khin Maung Swe, a CEC member and Chairman of the Information and Publicity Department of the NLD, said.
The party, which swept the 1990 elections, said it would officially make an announcement on the nine newly inducted CEC members in a statement on January 18.
Rangoon’s political circles said, the newly appointed CEC members include Thein Nyunt from Thngankyun township, Dr. Win Naing, Secretary of Rangoon branch NLD, Han Thar Myint, Member of the Education committee, Dr. Than Nyein, Vice-Chairman of the Rangoon NLD branch and advocate Nyan Win, Member of Parliament from Apaung township.
The NLD CEC, many of whose members had served long prison terms, have in recent months come under pressure in the party as members across the country wanted the CEC to convene a general assembly.
But Khin Maung Shwe said, as the party is currently not yet formatted properly, the CEC was forced to appoint new members instead of using the democratic way of electing them.
With Burma’s ruling junta gearing up for a general election in 2010, as part of their roadmap to democracy, observers are speculating over NLD’s activities. The NLD has said it is willing to contest the junta’s elections on condition that the 2008 constitution is revised and all political prisoners released.
The NLD has time and again called on the junta to start a political dialogue as the first step to negotiate a process of reconciliation. The junta, however, had constantly rejected the NLD’s proposals and continued with their planned roadmap.
In November, Aung San Suu Kyi, in a letter to junta supremo Than Shwe offered to cooperate with him in easing western sanctions, and requested a face to face meeting with him to discuss the issue.
While Than Shwe granted her other request to allow meeting her party leaders, he made no official response to her request for a meeting with him.
Aung San Suu Kyi’s second request to allow her to convene a meeting with all her party’s CEC members has also so far not fetched a response from the junta.
