UN envoy to meet junta boss today

The secretive regime, which in the past has often frustrated efforts by other UN envoys to visit the country, is facing intense international criticism over its suppression of the protests, which left 13 dead and hundreds arrested.

Gambari was allowed to meet with detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi for more than an hour on Sunday in Yangon to discuss anti-government protests that have rumbled since mid-August but turned into a mass movement last week.

But after going to Naypyidaw with hopes of meeting the junta leader on Monday, the envoy was taken on a government trip to Lashio, nearly 400 km northeast of the capital, for a workshop on EU-Asian relations.

He would return to the capital on Tuesday to meet with Than Shwe, the official said. Last week the regime unleashed a military campaign to stop what became the biggest anti-government demonstrations here in 20 years.

The four-day crackdown, which saw live rounds, baton charges and tear gas used against monks, protesters and civilians alike, succeeded in largely stopping the demonstrations.

The delay does not augur well for Gambari’s mission, hastily arranged last week when the junta sent in soldiers to crush more than a week of monk-led mass protests against decades of military rule and deepening poverty in the former Burma.

The only certain thing about Gambari, a former Nigerian foreign minister, is that he was still in the country 48 hours after his arrival, a prospect that did not look likely when he arrived.