Thein Sein 1st of Myanmar's leaders to visit last exiled king's grave
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In this handout photo by the District Information Office (DIO) Ratnagiri, Myanmar President Thein Sein pays homage at the tomb of Burma's last monarch, King Thibaw and his wife, Supayalat, during a visit to Thibaw Palace in Ratnagiri district of the western Indian state of Maharashtra some 330km south of Mumbai on Dec 22, 2012. Mr Thein Sein on Saturday became the first of Myanmar's leaders to visit the tomb of his country's last king, who was exiled to India more than a century ago. -- PHOTO: AFP
MUMBAI (AFP) - President Thein Sein on Saturday became the first of Myanmar's leaders to visit the tomb of his country's last king, who was exiled to India more than a century ago.
The president paid homage at the run-down tomb of King Thibaw in the western Indian coastal city of Ratnagiri and met the late monarch's descendants.
"The meeting was marked by emotion," a local official told the Press Trust of India news agency, adding the president also invited the king's descendants to visit Myanmar during the two-hour visit.
The Myanmar leader travelled by helicopter to Ratnagiri from Mumbai, which lies some 330km away.
