Myanmar 'yearns' to join global community: Suu Kyi

Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi is pictured on a giant screen as she speaks in an audio address to the World Economic Forum, in Davos. -- PHOTO: AFP

DAVOS (Switzerland) - MYANMAR democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi told a gathering of the world business elite at the Swiss resort of Davos that her countrymen 'yearn to be a part of the global community.'

'I would like to speak on behalf of the 55 million people of Burma who have for the most part been left behind,' she said, in an audio address to the World Economic Forum, the world's most influential annual networking event.

'We yearn to be a part of the global community: not only to be economically and socially connected, but also to achieve the domestic political stability and national reconciliation that would enable us to fully address the needs of our people,' she added.

Ms Suu Kyi said her isolated, junta-ruled country has already 'missed so many opportunities because of political conflicts' over the last five decades. But she acknowledged that without political stability and national reconciliation, the country could not be integrated in the global community.

She urged potential investors to respect the environment and human rights, saying: 'I look forward to the day when there will be a political and social environment that is favourable to a wide range of investments in Burma.'

'We are certainly in need of innovation and diversification if our country is to fulfil the aspirations of its people and catch up with the rest of the world,' she said. -- AFP