Suu Kyi's party to skip Myanmar elections

YANGON, Myanmar, March 29 (UPI) -- Myanmar's main opposition party, led by detained activist Aung San Suu Kyi, will not participate in the country's first elections in 20 years, a spokesman said.

The National League for Democracy spokesman said the party decided not to register because of "unjust" electoral laws, under which the party is no longer legally recognized, the BBC reported Monday.

The laws recently announced by the military junta ruling the country formerly known as Burma required the NLD to expel Suu Kyi because she has a criminal record. Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, has been under house arrest for almost 14 of the past 20 years.

No date has been set for the elections, but the military has pledged to hold them this year.

The NLD's decision came after a meeting of more than 100 party members in Yangon, the BBC said.

The new election laws have been condemned by the United Nations, Britain, the United States and other countries.

The laws say parties cannot have any members with criminal convictions, ruling out many top NLD leaders who have been jailed because of their political activism. The laws also ban members of religious orders and public servants from joining political parties. In 2007, Buddhist monks were the key force behind deadly anti-junta protests.