The World - News from Feb. 17, 1989

Multi-party elections will be held in the spring of 1990 in Burma, the official radio said. The announcement came about five months after a military coup ended 26 years of one-party rule when military leader Gen. Saw Maung used his forces to suppress nationwide pro-democracy demonstrations in September, saying that Burma was heading toward anarchy. But he then promised fair, multi-party elections. The announcement by the Election Commission did not give an exact election date, but it said an election law would be published March 1, “14 months before the actual elections,” suggesting a date around early May, 1990. It said campaigning would begin three months before the elections.