Suu Kyi honors father as fighting flares

Friday's celebrations in honor of independence hero Aung San, who died in 1947, were the largest ever held. They centered on his birthplace of Natmauk, an isolated town in central Myanmar.

His daughter, Aung San Suu Kyi, who is currently the country's opposition leader, told the crowd: "If we want to inherit from my father, we have to build a real democratic nation."

Also known as "Bogyoke," or general, Aung San is revered in Myanmar. He is credited with freeing the country from colonial rule and ushering in a new era of unity between its numerous ethnic minorities. Decades of successive military rule after his assassination saw this vision come undone.

His daughter, Suu Kyi, was held under house arrest for almost 20 years.

The celebration, which marked a century since Aung San's birth, comes months before historic elections are due to be held, in which Suu Kyi, also known as "the Lady," will lead the opposition party. She successfully won a national by-election in 2012, but cannot become president under a clause in the country's constitution.

Fighting flares

The occasion was marred by clashes near the border with China, in which around 50 Myanmar soldiers were killed and more than 70 wounded.

A statement from the country's military said the fighting between Myanmar's army and a group of ethnic minority insurgents called the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) had taken place over several days in the Kokang region of northeastern Shan State. The area has been largely trouble-free for the past six years.

The MNDAA was previously part of the Communist Party of Burma. The rebel group, supported by China, fought against the country's government until it splintered in 1989.

On Thursday the state-run newspaper Global New Light of Myanmar reported that the nation's military had launched an operation on Monday, after members of the MNDAA seized weapons from a local militia.

It also said several military air strikes were launched in an effort to end the fighting. The paper reported more than 13 instances of violence in recent days between government-backed troops and rebel fighters near the self-administered region's capital Laukkai.

China called for peace in the region, fearing being flooded by refugees trying to escape the violence.

In 2009, tens of thousands of people fled into southwestern China following clashes between rebels and government troops.

The number of casualties sustained by the insurgents is unclear.

Since 2011 President Thein Sein has been working on peace agreements with several ethnic groups that have been campaigning for autonomy since the country gained independence in 1948. But recent flare-ups, particularly in Kachin and Shan states, have weakened hopes of a large-scale ceasefire. The government had hoped to sign more pacts in March of this year.

an/ (AFP, Reuters, AP)