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Time running out for Myanmar survivors: opposition
OTTAWA (Reuters) - Time is running out for those who survived a massive cyclone that may have killed more than 10,000 people in Myanmar, a prominent opponent of the country's military dictatorship said on Monday.
Sein Win, who heads a self-proclaimed government in exile, also said the junta should drop plans to hold a May 10 referendum on a new army-drafted constitution that critics say will entrench military control.
United Nations officials say Saturday's cyclone left hundreds of thousands of people in the impoverished southeast Asian country without shelter or drinking water. Myanmar was formerly called Burma.
"Time is running out. It is an urgent operation. We know how our people suffered. They have nothing to eat," said Win.
"In Rangoon (the old name for Yangon, Myanmar's largest city) there is no drinking water. The water supply facility is quite damaged," he said in Ottawa after accepting a certificate of honorary Canadian citizenship on behalf of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Canada said on Monday it would contribute C$2 million ($1.98 million) to the international relief effort.
The constitution is part of a "road map to democracy" that is meant to culminate in elections in 2010 and end nearly five decades of military rule. Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy opposes the charter.
"I would like to say, (in) this situation, forget about the referendum. What is most important is to get the people who suffered (emergency) aid and to start managing this big operation," said Win.
"This constitution will not lead to democracy and will also not solve our problems," he added. Suu Kyi is under house arrest in Myanmar.
(Reporting by David Ljunggren; editing by Rob Wilson)
