First Secretary of the Myanmar State Peace and Development Council Lieutenant-General Thein Sein has urged all national races in the country to make concerted efforts for successful implementation of the seven-step roadmap to democracy, official newspaper The New Light of Myanmar reported on Sunday.

Thein Sein, who is also chairman of the National Convention Convening Commission, said that the national convention, the first step of the seven-step roadmap, is in session in the process of transition to democracy and progress has been made in this regard.

Thein Sein made the remarks at a coordination meeting for organizing the 60th Anniversary Union Day on Saturday in the new administrative capital of Nay Pyi Taw, 390 kilometers north of Yangon.

Thanks to efforts of the eight delegates of the national convention, fruitful results can be achieved for the emergence of the state constitution, he said.

He stressed that the government had firmly pledged to implement the seven-step roadmap phase by phase after successful completion of the national convention which is expected to adjourn at the end of this month.

The current session of Myanmar's national convention to lay down basic detailed principles for drawing up a new state constitution has discussed all the remaining chapters of "Election ", "Political Parties","State of Emergency", "Amendments of Constitution", "State Flag, State Emblem, National Anthem and Capital", "Transitory Provisions" and "General Provisions".

The national convention started in 1993 but first adjourned for eight years from April 1, 1996 to May 16, 2004 and formally resumed on May 17, 2004. Since then it has laid down detailed basic principles for eight chapters out of 15 -- "The State Fundamental Principles (104 basic principles)", "Structure of State", "Head of state", "Legislature", " Executive", "Judiciary", "Tatmataw (Armed Forces)" and "Citizenship, Fundamental Rights and Duties of Citizens".

According to the seven-step political roadmap to democracy announced by the government in 2003, after the end of the convention which constitutes the first step of the roadmap, it will embark on the remaining steps of the roadmap outlined as undergoing a national referendum on draft of the constitution, holding a new general election to produce parliament representatives and forming a new democratic government.

Attending the convention are over 1,000 delegates coming from eight categories of delegate groups -- over 600 representing for national races, over 100 each for state service personnel and turned-in former anti-government ethnic armed groups, about 90 for farmers, 50 for intellectuals, 40 for workers, 20 for political parties and 10 for parliament representatives-elect (in the 1990 general election).

Source: Xinhua