Suu Kyi party member dies in Myanma

[moe@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Suu Kyi party member dies in Myanmar jail 
06:55 a.m. Mar 09, 1998 Eastern 
BANGKOK, March 9 (Reuters) - A member of Aung San Suu Kyi's opposition
National League for Democracy (NLD) died in a Myanmar (Burma) prison after
being tortured, an exiled students group said on Monday. 

Thein Tin died at Yangon General Hospital on February 18, the All Burma
Students' Democratic Front (ABSDF) said in a statement from Bangkok. Thein
Tin was a member of the NLD's Yangon Township Organising Committee. 

``The State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) claims U Thein Tin died of
blood cancer,'' the statement said. ``However, sources said U Thein Tin was
tortured and his health was deteriorating when he was finally admitted to
hospital.'' 

``He was already dying when he was taken to hospital according to the
sources, and the SPDC had long refused his requests for proper medical
care,'' the statement said. 

A Myanmar government spokesman confirmed Thein Tin had died but denied the
accusations that he had been poorly treated. 

He said Thein Tin had even been given a pardon three days before his death
and released from his prison sentence because he had liver cancer. 

``Medically, Thein Tin has been suffering from liver cirrhosis since 1982
and while he was serving his sentence on the 3rd of December 1997 the prison
medical authorities transferred him to the Yangon hospital,'' he said. 

He said Thein Tin's family was allowed to pay him regular visits while he
was in hospital. 

Top NLD officials were not available for comment. 

The ABSDF said Thein Tin was detained in Insein Prison since 1996 and was
charged under section 10 (a) of the State Protection Act which is designed
to ``protect the country from the dangers of those who wish to harm the
state.'' 

Several NLD members -- including some of Suu Kyi's top aides -- have died in
jail over the past few years, with opposition members citing torture and
poor treatment for their deaths. 

Suu Kyi says about 1,000 NLD members or supporters are still being held as
political prisoners in Myanmar jails. 

The NLD won a landslide victory in a 1990 election but the results were not
accepted by the military government. ^REUTERS@