TOKYO — Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Tuesday called
for Japanese investment and economic aid that would create jobs in the
Southeast Asian economy, news reports said.
The 67-year-old head
of the National League for Democracy, now on her first visit to Japan in
27 years following more than 14 years of house arrest, made the request
during her meeting with Japanese lawmakers in Tokyo.
"The people
cannot improve their livelihood without a job," Myanmar's pro-democracy
icon told the lawmakers, according to Kyodo News.
She also
requested Japan's government assistance in securing clean drinking water
and irrigation water for farming, building roads, supplying
electricity, and the enhancement of a medical and healthcare service.
Myanmar can put Japanese assistance into "effective" use, she was quoted by Kyodo as saying.
Suu
Kyi, who met Crown Prince Naruhito on Tuesday, is scheduled to hold
talks with Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida late Tuesday and Prime
Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday.
Her visit comes as Japan continues to court newly-liberalised Myanmar as a trading partner.
Unlike
many industrialised countries, Japan maintained trade ties and generous
aid for Myanmar while it was ruled by a military junta, warning that
taking a hard line could push it closer to China.
Tokyo has also
gently pressed the country's leaders to listen to the voices of those in
opposition and the international community.
Since the end of
military rule in 2011, Myanmar has made visible efforts to open up to
the rest of the world and has lured international firms to start
operations in the potentially lucrative market.
Japanese
businesses in particular have been active in the country with strong
backing from Tokyo, including the cancellation of 350 billion yen ($3.6
billion) of debt and numerous aid grants.
On Wednesday, Suu Kyi is
to address a speech at the University of Tokyo and hold a news
conference in Tokyo before leaving the country on Friday.
source: AFP
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