Burma’s de facto leader, State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, on Tuesday morning arrived in the Kachin State capital Myitkyina on a rare visit to the restive northern region.

Suu Kyi was greeted at Myitkyina Airport by fellow members of her National League for Democracy (NLD) party and local supporters.

Tin Soe, the NLD’s Lower House MP from Hpakant, said the state counsellor was accompanied by government officials, including Home Affairs Minister Lt-Gen Kyaw Swe, with the delegation scheduled to meet with local NGOs and religious organisations, as well as take a tour of an internally displaced person (IDP) camp in Waingmaw Township before heading back to Rangoon later in the day.

“The [state counsellor] arrived in Myitkyina at 8:30am and went directly to Myitkyina University, where she was scheduled to meet with local representatives,” said Tin Soe, adding that the main agenda of her visit is to discuss issues relevant to negotiating a peace deal with the country’s various ethnic armed groups.

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Kachin Baptist Convention (KBC) general secretary Dr Sam Sun told DVB on Monday that his organisation had an appointment to meet with Suu Kyi at the Palm Spring Hotel in Myitkyina the following day.

“She is also scheduled to visit an IDP camp run by the KBC in Waingmaw,” he confirmed.

The Office of the State Counsellor made no statement about Tuesday’s trip to Kachin State. When contacted by DVB yesterday, the NLD’s Kachin headquarters declined to comment on her visit.