Myanmar government paves way for Suu Kyi's return to politics
Myanmar's government has introduced a revised law on political parties in an apparent attempt to encourage Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy to accept the political system and re-register as a party.
President Thein Sein signed the amendments to the Political Party Registration Law as senior US diplomats were ending a visit to encourage his government to push forward with democratic reforms.
The amendments of the party law signed by Thein Sein alter three areas of the law to accommodate Suu Kyi and the National League for Democracy, Express.co.uk reports.
The law, originally enacted in March last year by the previous military junta, prohibited anyone who has been convicted of a crime from being a member of a political party
Suu Kyi had been convicted on a trumped-up charge and would have had to leave the party she helped found.
But the clause has now been dropped, clearing the way for former political prisoners to enter politics.
Another article was amended to say that registered parties shall "respect and abide" by the constitution rather than "safeguard" it.
The change was evidently made to accommodate criticisms of the charter by Suu Kyi's group without making them illegal, the report said.
The third amendment said that any party that registers after the general election must run candidates in at least three constituencies in by-elections to remain legally registered.
The original law said a party had to stand at least three candidates in the general election, which would have been an impediment to Suu Kyi's party, since it boycotted the 2010 polls.
Source: Myanmar News.Net
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