Myanmar’s detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi met a senior junta official on Friday, state media said, but it was not known what they discussed.

MRTV showed footage from the fourth meeting between the Nobel laureate and ruling junta member Aung Kyi since he was appointed as a go-between after last September’s crackdown on pro-democracy protests triggered world outrage.

“We have no idea what exactly they talked about, but we welcome their meeting. The more they meet, the better for the country,” NLD spokesman Nyan Win said.

Witnesses told Reuters they had seen a car leave Suu Kyi’s Yangon home, where she is under house arrest, and drive to a state guesthouse. The meeting lasted about one hour.

They last met on November 19 when diplomats speculated that their talks might have focused on the junta’s preconditions for negotiations between Suu Kyi and regime leader Senior General Than Shwe.

He has offered direct talks if Suu Kyi, who has been under some form of detention for more than 12 of the last 18 years, abandons confrontation and her support for sanctions against the military, which has ruled the former Burma for 45 years.

Suu Kyi has said her previous meetings with Aung Kyi were constructive and she was ready to work with the military to establish proper negotiations.

But critics say the regime is sending mixed signals.

Than Shwe has repeatedly insisted the only path to political reform is via the junta’s own “roadmap to democracy,” suggesting that any talks would have to take place within that framework.

Western governments have dismissed the roadmap as a blueprint for legitimizing the army’s grip on power.

Under an outline for a new charter, the head of the army will be the most powerful person in the country, with the right to appoint key cabinet figures and suspend the constitution in the event of an emergency that he defines.

At least 31 people were killed in September when the junta crushed the biggest pro-democracy protests in nearly 20 years, prompting international condemnation and tougher sanctions.

Indonesia, the largest member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which includes Myanmar, has been increasingly critical of Myanmar’s foot-dragging on reforms.

On Tuesday Jakarta urged the generals to take more credible steps towards democratization, including releasing political prisoners, ahead of Myanmar Prime Minister Thein Sein’s visit to Indonesia next week.

Neither diplomacy nor sanctions have brought changes in Myanmar, but Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajudait said it was important to continue to engage Myanmar.

“Some countries in the region choose to be indifferent but for Indonesia, we can’t afford to ignore this problem,” he said. “We have to be pro-active.”

(Writing by Darren Schuettler; editing by Roger Crabb)

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January 11, Mizzima News
Bomb Blast near Burma’s New Capital kills one

In a rare instant, a small bomb today exploded at the Pyinmana railway station near the tightly guarded Burma’s new jungle capital Nay Pi Taw killing a woman, a railway official said.

The bomb exploded at about 4:30 a.m. (local time) in the toilet of the Pyinmana railway station, instantly killing a woman, who was believed to be using the toilet, said the railway officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity as he is not authorized to speak to the press.

“The blast killed one woman on the spot and destroyed the toilet. There were no other casualties or damages,” the officer said.

Security has been tightened at the station but train schedules have not been altered or disrupted, the officer added.

A nurse at the Pyinmana hospital, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the body of the woman victim has been brought to the hospital and will be sent for post-mortem.

“Only one woman has been brought to the hospital and she has been brought dead. The body will be sent for post-mortem,” the nurse told Mizzima.

While the culprit behind the bomb blast could not be identified yet, an officer at the Nay Pyi Taw police station said, they are investigating.

“As of now we cannot give any clue as to who is behind the blast. We are still investigating the case,” said the police officer, of the rank of a sergeant.

Though the dead woman could not be identified, sources in Rangoon said, she belongs to a Karen ethnic group.

Though such small bomb explosions are not uncommon in Burma, the blast is the first in Nay Pyi Taw, which the ruling junta made its new capital in November 2005.

The ruling junta, which has been quick at pointing to its political opposition and dissidents for any such blasts in the past, has so far said nothing.