UN envoy to visit Myanmar on five-day mission

YANGON: United Nations envoy Ibrahim Gambari is returning to Myanmar for a five-day visit on Monday at the invitation of the ruling military regime, an official confirmed Saturday.

The trip was initially planned for May but postponed when Cyclone Nargis hit the country overnight May 2-3 devastating the fertile delta region and leaving 138,000 people dead or missing.

"He will arrive on Monday and stay here for about five days. He will meet with the information minister in Yangon the next day," a Myanmar official said on condition of anonymity.

The official could not confirm whether Gambari would meet with senior military officials or visit detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

It will be Gambari's fourth visit in his role as mediator between Myanmar's rulers and the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) led by Aung San Suu Kyi.

His last visit in March was described as "disappointing" by UN officials after the junta publicly rebuffed his calls for political reform.

While Gambari held two meetings with Aung San Suu Kyi, he was unable to see junta leader General Tan Shwe.

Myanmar's information minister Kyaw Hsann rebuked Gambari after his November visit for releasing a letter written by Suu Kyi.

The regime also rejected Gambari's offer to send foreign observers to a referendum held in May for a new constitution.

Myanmar has been ruled by the military since 1962. The NLD won a landslide victory in 1990 elections but the junta never allowed them to take office.

Suu Kyi has spent most of the last 19 years under house arrest. She was allowed to meet her lawyer on August 8 following a visit by UN human rights envoy Tomas Ojea Quinta.