Yangon (dpa) – A rival of Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar's April 1 by-election said he will appeal an election commission decision to throw out his objection to her candidacy, a report said Sunday. U Tin Yi, of the Unity and Peace Party, alleged that opposition leader Suu Kyi was ineligible because she enjoyed “the rights and privileges of a subject of a foreign government or a citizen of a foreign country,” the Myanmar Times reported. The election commission rejected the petition on February 15, but gave him a week to file an appeal. The list of candidates for Kawhmu, 30 kilometers south of Yangon, is “pending because we are waiting for him to file the appeal. We will announce (the list) after the outcome is known,” election official U Myat Soe said. Suu Kyi, 66, kicked off her campaign on February 11. It is the first election the Nobel peace laureate has contested in Myanmar. She was under house arrest during the 1990 polls, which her National League for Democracy won by a landslide but was barred from taking power by the army. At the time of the November 7, 2010 general election, Suu Kyi was again under house arrest. She was released a week later. The fact that the current government has allowed Suu Kyi to contest is seen as a major advance for Myanmar's steps toward a more democratic system after five decades of military dictatorships. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/SM8xo Tags: Elections, Myanmar, President, Suu Kyi Section: East Asia, Latest News, Women
