and pro democracy leader aung san suu kyi. he later told reporters in bangkok on tuesday that he was optimistic about myanmar's progress. >> it is a process but the ongoing process gives a lot of optimism. >> meanwhile, campaigning for landmark elections has begun in earnest. aung san suu kyi is contesting a seat in the low-income area on the outskirts of yangon. nhk world followed the nobel laureate to appeal for their support. >> reporter: opposition leader aung san suu kyi has begun campaigning in yangon. she visited the constituency on saturday. her first official campaign appearance in the district she hopes to represent. >> translator: the most important thing is to create new jobs for people who are unemployed. if you believe in us, i promise to implement this without fail. >> translator: aung san suu kyi will definitely win. >> translator: we believe that she will improve our living standards. >> reporter: komu district, south of yangon, is home to about 80,000 borders. farming is the area's biggest industry and most r

democracy leader aung san suu kyi is standing in the poll. during tuesday's session, a lawmaker from one of the countries' ethnic groups welcomed the prospect of aung san suu kyi entering parliament. >> her presence will be welcome and force changes here, too. >> about a quarter of the seats in parliament are -- those lawmakers were more cautious on the topic of aung san suu kyi, but they were welcoming of the reforms. >> her arrival is immaterial, because we, like her, are taking the stance of democritization. >> rebuilding myanmar's economy urgently requires lifting of economic sanctions. to that end, many lawmakers seem to believe democratization is necessary. the reform process seems increasingly irreversible. >>> rebuilding the myanmar economy was also on the agenda during the president's three day visit to singapore which wrapped up tuesday. the two sides signed an agreement that will see singapore share economic know how with myanmar. he met with his counterpart as well as the prime minister monday. they call on singapore to share best

pro democracy leader aung san suu kyi is running in the election. mann says the country will welcome election monitors. mann reiterated myanmar's promise to secretary of state hillary clinton that in november that it will hold free and fair elections. >> translator: aung san suu kyi is getting great public support. if the voters wish, she could become a member of parliament. >> aung san suu kyi is gaining support in the country side. she's contesting a seat in the low income area on the outskirts of yangon. suu kyi's national league for democracy won the 1990 parliamentary elections but the military government at the time rejected the results. the nld boycotted the 2010 vote. the election is seen as a touch stone in myanmar's move toward democracy. with just over a month to go, the eyes of the world are now focused on how it will turn out. >>> next, we go to vietnam for the first in our series of special reports about the rapid economic development of central vietnam. patchari raksawong is in the capital, hanoi. >> reporter: international media ofte

will be free and fair. >> let's talk about the campaigning, you are on the trail with aung san suu kyi. her reputation is enough to bring out the crowds but what are the actual details of her campaign? >> yesterday was the official start of campaigning although she has made a few forays across the country. today is the first time that she is appearing before the constituency. there have been people out to catch a glimpse of her. crowds lining up along the side of the road. i talked to people that had been looking to get a position on the road to caps a glimpse of her. she spent quite a lot of time sticking her head out of the sunroof there were chants all of the way along the line. -- she spent quite a lot of time sticking her head out of the sun roof. there were chants all the way along the line. the constituency will be with her. wherever she goes, it is a logistical nightmare for the people that were with her. >> the secretary general has called on britain and argentina to avoid any further escalation in tensions over the falkland islands. tensions have raised after britain sent a d

and the opposition leader aung sasuky they have been stepping up reforms, like allowing aung san suu kyi to run in parliamentary bi-elections in april and releasing many politic prisoners. they say all economic sanctions may be lifted in april, depending on the outcome of bileio and release of more political prisoners. the eu foreign policy chief katherine ashton is scheduled to visit in april. the eu hopes to improve relation with myanmar, following recent announcement by e s.t ll send an ambassador to the country. >> mo tn 60,000 households were set to evacuate after the disaster at the fukusha iii. eyeceived claim forms from tokyo electric power company. half of them have sent the forms back. now nearly a year since the accident, the compensation process is ineffective or too slow. today's nuclear watch focuses on coenti fvictims. first we hear of one family who isn't happy with the compensation they received. >> he and his family were forced to leave their homes after the nueaacdent last march. his home is ten kilometers from the disabled plant. before the accident, hepent nearly $40

the pro-democracy leader aung san suu kyi is standing as a candidate. we're joined from bangkok on this hour. what can you tell us about campaigning? has iit began in earnest? >> it should began today. there has some -- there has been some tentative campaigning ahead of the official start. this is when it gets down to the serious business when the candidates will be out in the stock. we are hearing that a senior dissident monk, shin gambira, was detained for questioning. we are hearing this from sources on the ground who have been talking to the bbc burmese language service. we don't know the reason for his detention but that is a potentially worrying sign. >> you say that is a potentially worrying sign, we know that shin gambira led the saffron revolution. he has expressed deep skepticism about the reforms. could that be a reason for him being taken away? >> we don't know the reasons because the authorities have not said but it comes at a very sensitive time. you are right in saying that shin gambira was one of the leaders of the 2007 anti- government

prodemocracy leader kyi has filed her candidacy and is widely expected to win a seat. the philippine military says 15 militants have been killed in an air raid on the southern island of holo. the dead reportedly include leaders of grouped linked to al qaeda. >> reporter: the military says at least 15 people died in thursday's u.s.-backed strike on an islamic militant camp. it says the dead include leaders of the philippine-based militant group in the southeast asian terror network. a malaysian leader was reportedly among those killed. the united states had put a price of $5 million on his head for training others to make bombs. a military commander in the region says the groups have suffered significant damage. but the military hasn't revealed how the deaths of the leaders were confirmed. he has been on the wing since its leader died five years ago. observers say the group has split into several factions so time will be needed to estimate the impact of the leaders' deaths. >> and that wraps up our bulletin. >>> a newspaper reports that defense secretary leon panetta be

prodemocracy leader kyi has filed her candidacy and is widely expected to win a seat. the philippine military says 15 militants have been killed in an air raid on the southern island of holo. the dead reportedly include leaders of groups ink willed to al qaeda. >> reporter: the military says at least 15 people died in thursday's u.s.-backed strike on an islamic militant camp. it says the dead include leaders of the philippine based militant group in the southeast asian terror network. a malaysian leader was reportedly among those killed. the united states had put a price of $5 million on his head for training a man to make bombs. a military commander in the region says the groups have suffered significant damage. but the military hasn't revealed how the deaths of the leaders were confirmed. he's been on the wing since the leader died five years ago. obzers say the group has split into several factions. so time will be needed to measure the impact of the leaders deaths. >> and that wraps up our bulletin. >>> a newspaper reports that defense secretary leon panetta believ

the california theater is screening "the lady" a new film starring michelle yo of ber ma, ang sun sui kyi. you can sit in on panel discussions and lech swhurs industry professionals. on thursday, grammy winner natalie cole unveils the new film she helped produce and actor elliott gould will be in town as one of the resip yoents of the maverick spirit award. >>> pack your bags, we are taking you on a trip. the olympic rings were officially unveiled last night in london to mark 150 days until the start of the summer games. the colorful rings stand 36 feet tall. the five iconic rings traveled on a born and floating on the river thames. they begin here on july 27th. >>> is it a stretch to think yoga could one day be an olympic sport, some enthusiasts are pushing for it the national yoga championships are this weekend and organizers say adding yoga to the olympics makes plenty of sense. maybe one day, we will be doing downward dog as an olympic sport. >> perfect time for that good form. >> i think they gave ping pong a hard ti>>niood ght. ou6:. >> good night.

a delegation from the european parliament has met burma's opposition leader, aung san suu kyi, at her home. the group also visited the country's president. the e.u. is due to review its sanctions on burma later in the month, earlier this week, they announced an aid package for health and education projects in the country. north korea is marking what would have been the 70th birthday of its former leader, kim jong il, who died in december. now, his son, kim jong un, has been leading a parade in pyongyang, where a bronze statue of his late father was unveiled. the bbc's lucy williamson has this. >> north korea is having to pack a lot into its ceremonies these days. here, on the 70th anniversary of his birth, the country's late ruler has to share the limelight with his youngest son. kim jong un has big shoes to fill. events like this are designed to help him do it. so, today, on his dad's birthday, north korea's new leader got a pledge of allegiance from the army. his dad got fireworks and waving flowers. but then kim jong il has already received several birthday gifts from the nation, a

and is also allowing the opposition leader aung san suu kyi to run in parliamentary bi election in april. the development commissioner was there to show support for the reforms. foreign affairs chief katherine ashton plans to visit after the bi-election. the eu is considering lifting sanctions on myanmar since 1996. >>> u.s. government officials plan to impose more sanctions on iran. they accuse them of supporting terrorism. the u.s. treasury department said thursday the iranian ministry is providing support for terrorist networks. it specifically cited al qaeda and hezbollah and hamas. under sanctions, the u.s. will stop issuing visas to ministry officials and freeze any ministry assets in the united states. the decision comes after a series of bomb attacks in several countries earlier this week. monday, a blags in new deli targeted israel diplomats. it was followed by three explosions in bangkok. they arrested three suspects one who carried an iranian passport. >>> a u.s. court decliends request for injunction to prevent anti-whaling activists destructing the whaling fleet. it ruled th