ASEAN Group Applauds Burmese Opposition's Reconciliation Efforts

A group affiliated with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations has praised Burma's main opposition party for taking steps toward national reconciliation.

The ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus delegation (A.I.P.M.C.) to the Thai Parliament issued a statement Thursday welcoming the party's offer to cooperate with the current military regime.

The National League for Democracy said last week it would recognize the role of the junta in national politics if its leaders agree to convene parliament according to the results of the 1990 elections.

The N.L.D. won an overwhelming victory in those elections, but the military junta refused to recognize the results.

Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has spent almost a decade under house arrest. The A.I.P.M.C. also called on China and Indonesia to pressure Burma to reform.