Election Commission Disbands NLD

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Burma's Union Election Commission (EC) officially announced on Tuesday evening the dissolution of 10 political parties, including the main opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), which is led by detained pro-

democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.

The state-run radio and television announced at about 6 p.m on Tuesday that the NLD had been dissolved as it did not register as a political party for the November general election.

The dissolved parties include five parties that were previously accepted by the EC under the party registration process. The state media said the five had been dissolved for failing to complete their candidates lists in time. There are

now 37 political parties that have been granted registration.

The registered parties have been told they can campaign through state-run media such as radio and television for 15 minutes each. They, however, need to inform the EC seven days in advance before running a party campaign ad.

The five previously registered parties that were dissolved were named as: the Union Karen League, the Myanmar New Society Party, the Mro National Party, the Myanmar Democracy Congress and the Regional Development Party

(Pyay).

The other five parties were dissolved because they did not re-apply for registration, the Burmese media said.  

The five parties dissolved for not fulfilling this obligation were named as: the NLD, the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy, the Union Pa-O National Organization, the Shan State Kokang Democratic Party and the Wa National

Development Party.  

The state media said all 10 parties in question could no longer participate in any form of political activity.

Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi's NLD won the country's last election, in 1990, by a landslide, but was never allowed to take power.