|PIC1|Three former US Presidents and two former British Prime Ministers have signed a letter to the head of the military regime in Burma calling for the release of democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Baroness Thatcher, Sir John Major, and former US Presidents Jimmy Carter, George Bush Sr and Bill Clinton joined 54 other former presidents and prime ministers from countries in all continents in urging Senior General Than Shwe to free the Nobel Laureate from house arrest.

Aung San Suu Kyi, who led the National League for Democracy to victory in the elections in Burma in 1990, has been under house arrest for more than 11 of the past 17 years. Her current period of house arrest is due to end on 27 May 2007.

A copy of the letter will be sent to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and all 15 members of the UN Security Council. The UN Special Rapporteur for human rights in Burma, Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, and 13 other UN Special Rapporteurs have already called for Aung San Suu Kyi's release.

Christian Solidarity Worldwide, who has worked with other campaign organisations to gather support for the letter, has released a statement from its National Director, Stuart Windsor: "We are pleased to have been involved in this initiative, which sends a very important message to the Burmese regime and the United Nations that the continued detention of Aung San Suu Kyi, and the gross violations of human rights in Burma, should not be tolerated any longer."