Burma arrests 31 democracy activists

The Burmese authorities have arrested a further 18 people amid protests against soaring fuel prices.

The Burmese authorities have arrested a further 18 people amid protests against soaring fuel prices.

Thirteen others were arrested on Wednesday night.

The Burmese army has deployed pro-junta gangs on the streets of Rangoon for the third straight day in a major crackdown on protests. Police also arrested former opposition politician and rights activist Myint Aye today.

The army also ordered members of the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) in Yenangyaung, north of Rangoon, not to assemble in groups of more than five after 60 people staged a peaceful protest march yesterday.

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The town - birthplace of Aung San, the former Burma's independence hero and father of NLD figurehead Aung San Suu Kyi - has long been a hotbed of anti-junta feeling.

Ms Suu Kyi, whose NLD won a 1990 landslide election victory only to be denied power by the army, has spent most of the 17 years since in prison or under house arrest.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern has condemned the arrests. "The Irish Government believes that these arrests, and the continued detention of other political leaders, including Aung San Suu Kyi, manifestly contradicts the professed aim to transform Burma into a democratic society through an inclusive, broadly-based process."