JURIST - Paper Chase: Myanmar high court dismisses Suu Kyi suit over party dissolution

[JURIST] The Myanmar Supreme Court dismissed a lawsuit Monday filed by pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] challenging the government's dissolution of her National League of Democracy (NLD) [party website], according to unnamed government officials. The court has not announced why the suit was dismissed [DPA report]. Suu Kyi filed the suit [JURIST report] last week, seeking to reverse the government's decision to formally abolish the party [BBC report] in May after it failed to register for elections that took place earlier this month. Suu Kyi asked the court to annul the part of the election law that bars political prisoners [JURIST report] from participating in elections and also to establish a parliament of lawmakers who won in the 1990 elections. Suu Kyi originally filed suit [JURIST report] with the court in April, but her claim was rejected. The dissolution was seen as political move by the military government in order to keep the NLD from participating in Myanmar's 2010 elections, the first in 20 years. Also Monday, reports emerged that Myanmar's government has suspended the publication of nine weekly news journals [News 24 report] that it deemed had given too much coverage to Suu Kyi's recent release from house arrest.

Suu Kyi's visit to the high court last week marked her first visit to Rangoon since the Myanmar Police Force [official website] released [JURIST report] her after almost eight years of house arrest. Her release came days after the Myanmar Supreme Court rejected an appeal [JURIST report] challenging the conditions of her house arrest. Though the challenge was originally scheduled to be heard in October, the court waited until after the controversial elections [JURIST report] to issue its ruling. It is anticipated that Suu Kyi will assist in a challenge [AP report] against the election results in which the ruling party maintained its hold on power, but the military government has warned [Telegraph report] against any kind of action by the opposition.