Lawyers for Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi said today they had lodged an appeal against her house arrest with the Supreme Court but expected no rapid decision.
The 64-year-old Nobel peace laureate was sentenced in August to three years in prison for letting an American intruder stay in her home in May, which contravened the terms of her previous detention. Burma's junta leader later commuted the sentence to 18 months' house arrest.
"We lodged the appeal at the Supreme Court this morning. The Supreme Court will take some time to decide whether to accept it or not," lawyer Kyi Win told reporters.
Ms Suu Kyi has spent more than 14 of the past 20 years in detention of one sort or another, mostly under house arrest.
Burma's military, which has ruled the country for almost 50 years, plans to hold multi-party elections in 2010.
A senior official from the Foreign Ministry was quoted this week as saying Suu Kyi could be released soon so she could help organise her party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), for next year's election.
However, the official, Min Lwin, told Reuters yesterday after his return from an overseas trip that he had been misquoted.
Critics call the proposed election a sham and say the military will still hold the real power. The NLD has not yet said whether it will take part.
The United States is reviewing its policy on Burma, trying to engage it diplomatically but without lifting trade and investment sanctions for the time being.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called again yesterday for Ms Suu Kyi to be released and said the United States would be sceptical about an election that excluded opposition representatives.
Ms Clinton and President Barack Obama will be in Singapore this weekend where they are expected to attend a meeting with leaders of the Association of South East Asian Nations, which includes Burma. No bilateral meeting has been planned.
Reuters