Aung San Suu Kyi says Myanmar needs peace for development

"We must have peace in order that our development may be stable and sustainable," Suu Kyi told a meeting of business leaders in Japan.
"My country is very complex. We are made up of many ethnic people. As many of you know, we are still not at peace. There is still armed conflict between various armed groups in our country."
Her five-day visit to Japan comes amid ethnic tensions in Myanmar's western Rakhine state which has been torn by internal conflict between the majority Buddhists and Muslims for years.
"In order to have peace, we have to make sure that development is equitable. We want all ethnic people to feel that they have an equal chance to progress in our country," said Suu Kyi, the de facto leader of the South-East Asian country.
Clashes in Rakhine state last month left dozens of people dead and forced hundreds to flee the area.
More than 100,000 Muslim Rohingyas, deemed to be one of the most persecuted minorities in the world by the United Nations, have since been living in squalid camps, with restricted access to health care, education or jobs.
On Wednesday, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held talks with Suu Kyi, saying Japan would offer 800 billion yen (US$7.7 billion)worth of aid to Myanmar over five years to support its first democratically elected government.