YANGON: Myanmar's junta extended the house arrest of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Tuesday, a home ministry source said, a move likely to dismay Western nations who promised millions of dollars in aid after Cyclone Nargis.
The source, who asked not to be named, said a government official drove to Suu Kyi's lakeside Yangon villa to read out the six-month extension order in person. Her latest year-long detention order had been due to expire on Tuesday.
The 62-year-old Nobel laureate, whose National League for Democracy (NLD) party won a 1990 election landslide only to be denied power by the army, has now spent nearly 13 of the last 18 years under some form of arrest.
Her latest period of detention started on May 30, 2003 "for her own protection" after clashes between her supporters and pro-junta activists in the northern town of Depayin.
Earlier, the junta arrested 20 people trying to march to Suu Kyi's home.
Although few expected Suu Kyi to be released, the extension is a timely reminder of the ruling military's refusal to make any concessions on the domestic political front despite its grudging acceptance of foreign help after the May 2 cyclone.
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