UN envoy to Myanmar to hold talks in Indonesia

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The UN envoy for Myanmar, Ibrahim Gambari, is to meet with Indonesia's president and foreign minister from Thursday to discuss the military-ruled regime, his spokeswoman said Thursday.

The envoy's visit comes on the heels of the junta saying that democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi would be barred from running in elections under a proposed constitution, which has been drafted for approval in a May referendum.

Gambari, who is UN chief Ban Ki-moon's pointman on promoting national reconciliation in Myanmar, will meet with foreign minister Hassan Wirayuda on Thursday and with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Friday, spokeswoman Hua Jiang told AFP.

"It's another round of regional consultations for the Myanmar process," she said.

Gambari held talks in Beijing earlier this week and would travel on to Singapore and then Japan on this round of visits, she added.

The envoy said after meeting with Chinese officials that he expected to return to Myanmar earlier than April 15, the date authorities there initially said they would receive him.

Ban has said it was "essential" Gambari be allowed to re-enter the country, particularly after the junta had this month announced the referendum date.

The junta says the referendum -- if approved -- would clear the way for democratic elections in 2010, the first since Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) party scored a landslide victory in 1990 polls, which the junta never recognised.

Gambari has said he hoped all parties, including the NLD, would be involved in the electoral process.

The United States on Wednesday called the proposed constitution a failure as it banned the widowed Aung San Suu Kyi from running for office on the basis that she had been married to a foreigner.

Indonesia has pushed for engagement with Myanmar and the foreign minister has said that his country could play a significant role by sharing its experience of transition from military government to full-fledged democracy. (*) END

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