Suu Kyi's party swept Myanmar's historic elections

MYANMAR: Champion of Democracy, Aung San Suu Kyi won most seats in elections is held in Myanmar, becoming the main opposition force in the national parliament, official results showed Tuesday.

The National League for Democracy veteran dissident was victorious in 43 of the 44 districts that fielded candidates in the polls on Sunday, according to the electoral commission announced on state television.

The landslide victory in elections Suu Kyi gave her first seat in Parliament, although it does not endanger the comfortable majority of the army-backed Solidarity Union and Development Party (USDP).

Nobel Prize winner, said in his victory speech on Monday he hoped the vote would mark a "new era" for the nation after decades of repressive rule of the board, but appealed for political unity and urged his followers not to gloat.

The NLD won 37 seats in the 440-seat lower, with four in the Senate and two in the regional chambers, the results showed. A quarter of the seats are reserved for military officers have been elected.

The NLD lost one seat in the eastern Shan state Democratic Party Shan Nationalities, which has strong support among ethnic minorities.

The USDP had a single seat in an electoral district in northwestern Sagaing, where the NLD candidate was disqualified from standing. Election of Suu Kyi for political office is the latest change in the country formerly known as Burma, after decades of direct military rule ended last year.

Quasi-military government of Myanmar has surprised even his critics last year with a series of reforms including the release of hundreds of political prisoners and to welcome the opposition back into mainstream politics. President Thein Sein praised the elections as a success.

"The election was conducted successfully," the former general said in brief remarks to reporters on the sidelines of a meeting with other leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Phnom Penh.

Observers say that the regime needs Suu Kyi in Parliament to strengthen the legitimacy of its political system and promote an easing of Western sanctions. AFP