UN rejects request for Myanmar junta's seat without legal credentials

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
The UN General Assembly has rejected a request from the winners of Myanmar's 1990 elections to replace representatives of the country's current military junta at the United Nations, the UN said Friday. The UN's legal chief said credentials must be issued by a country's head of state or government, or by the minister for foreign affairs. The military has ruled Myanmar, also known as Burma, since 1962 and has been widely criticized for suppressing basic freedoms. The current junta, which took power in 1988 after crushing pro-democracy demonstrations, held general elections in 1990 but refused to cede power. A Sept. 9 letter from candidates elected to parliament in 1990 challenged the legitimacy of the country's military government.