UN says Burma brings forward Gambari visit

UNITED NATIONS - Burma's military government has agreed to bring forward a visit by U.N. special envoy Ibrahim Gambari, who now expects to go there in the first week of November, a U.N. spokeswoman said on Tuesday.

Gambari will travel to Burma directly from the region, which he is currently touring to discuss the crisis following the junta's heavy-handed crackdown on pro-democracy protesters, spokeswoman Michele Montas told a news briefing.

The purpose of his visit would be "to kick-start a dialogue (by Burma's government) with the opposition," Montas said. Many opposition figures, including leader Aung San Suu Kyi, are currently detained.

Exact dates have yet to be arranged, Montas said. Burma had earlier agreed to a visit in mid-November by Gambari, who previously visited the country three weeks ago at the height of the crisis.

Had the junta insisted on that timetable, Gambari would have returned to New York first. But the United States and its allies had been pressing the United Nations to try to get Burma to accept an earlier date.

Gambari would now be "continuing his consultations with key regional countries in the interim," Montas said. The U.N. envoy has already visited Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and India and is continuing on to China and Japan.

It was the second conciliatory gesture this week by the junta, which has also just agreed to let in U.N. human rights expert Paulo Sergio Pinheiro after banning him for four years. Pinheiro too expects to go to Burma in early November.

In Asia, Gambari has been pushing neighbors of Burma to take a tougher line against the junta. During his latest stop in India, Delhi promised to help push Burma towards democracy but stopped short of committing to concrete action.

Montas said Gambari was "urging India and other regional countries to actively encourage the government of Burma to continue to cooperate with the (U.N.) secretary-general's good offices' efforts, including by addressing continuing human rights concern".

In a statement to be issued on Wednesday to mark U.N. Day, U.N. staff in Burma said the country's estimated gross domestic product was less than half that of Cambodia or Bangladesh, one in three children under five was malnourished and less than half of children completed primary education.

"The concerns of the people have been clearly expressed though the recent demonstrations, and it is beholden on all to listen," they said.