urmese democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi has been detained or under house arrest for 15 of the past 21 years.<br /><br />But the ruling military regime says the 64-year-old Nobel Peace Prize winner will be released in November. <br /><br />Burma is expected to hold its first parliamentary elections in two decades this October.<br /><br />The planned election would be the first since 1990, when Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy party scored a landslide victory, which the country's military regime refused to recognize.<br /><br />But Human Right activist Debbie Stothard of the Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma, says the promise to free Suu Kyi might be a false alarm, as the junta should release her now to give Suu Kyi time to run in the election.<br /><br />[Debbie Stothard, Human Rights Activist]: <br />"They've always promised Aung San Suu Kyi's release when they start to feel that the pressure is too much on them."<br /><br />Human Rights Watch says the country’s new constitution, enacted in 2008, entrenches military rule and limits the role of independent political parties.<br /><br />[Debbie Stothard, Human Rights Activist]: <br />"It may not matter who wins the election because the parliament will not be able to change things without military approval."<br /><br />Ethnic groups still face attacks, and intimidation of political and human rights activists has increased.<br /><br />In recent months, Suu Kyi has been allowed to meet the junta's liaison officer and foreign diplomats.
