U.N. rights official still hopes fo

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Subject: U.N. rights official still hopes for Burma talks 

U.N. rights official still hopes for Burma talks

      RANGOON, Oct 17 (Reuter) - The U.N. special rapporteur on human rights
in Burma, Yozo Yokota, said on Tuesday he was hopeful Rangoon's military
government would begin talks with the pro-democracy opposition led by Aung
San Suu Kyi. 

    Yokota, speaking to reporters at the end of a 10-day fact finding mission
to Burma, said he had been encouraged in his talks with both the military and
the opposition. 

    ``Dialogue is not terminated. It's still waiting for an opportunity. I'm
hopeful that something will appear in the near future,'' he said. 

    Yokota met Suu Kyi, released from six years' house arrest in July, twice
during his visit. He also had talks with senior officials of the ruling State
Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC), including military intelligence
chief Lieutenant-General Khin Nyunt. 

    ``I'm very much encouraged by the fact that both the SLORC and Daw Aung
San Suu Kyi are still showing their willingness to restart, or continue their
dialogue,'' he said. 

    Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, met SLORC chairman General Than Shwe
and Khin Nyunt for the first time in September last year, while she was still
in detention. She met Khin Nyunt again the following month. 

    Neither Suu Kyi nor the SLORC has released any details of those two
meetings. 

    Since her July release she has made repeated calls for talks between the
military and the pro-democracy and ethnic minority opposition. 

    The SLORC has yet to make any public response to her calls. However, it
told a visiting U.S. official that the government was considering talks. 

Reut09:22 10-17-95