Myanmar's Suu Kyi calls for changes to constitution

Published on Jan 29, 2012

Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi called on Sunday for changes to the military-drafted constitution in her first political trip since ending a boycott of the country's political system last year and announcing plans to run for parliament. -- PHOTO: AP

DAWEI, Myanmar (REUTERS) - Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi called on Sunday for changes to the military-drafted constitution in her first political trip since ending a boycott of the country's political system last year and announcing plans to run for parliament.

Thousands of people lined the roads shouting 'Long live mother Suu' as her motorcade moved through the rural coastal region of Dawei about 615km south of her home city, Yangon, the main business centre.

The trip, only her fourth outside Yangon since her release from years of house arrest in November 2010, demonstrates the increasingly central role of the Nobel Peace Prize laureate as the South-east Asian state emerges from half a century of isolation.

'There are certain laws which are obstacles to the freedom of the people and we will strive to abolish these laws within the framework of the parliament,' Ms Suu Kyi said to cheers from supporters after meeting officials of her National League for Democracy (NLD) party in Dawei.