A top United Nations human-rights envoy has met with Burma's foreign minister at the beginning of a 10-day trip to assess the plight of political prisoners in the military-ruled country.

Paulo Sergio Pinheiro met in Rangoon with Foreign Minister Win Aung this (Monday) morning. No details of the meeting were released. He is expected to meet with opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi later in the day.

Mr. Pinheiro arrived in Burma Sunday amid increasing frustration among Burmese dissidents about the slow pace of the dialogue between the government and Aung San Suu Kyi, who heads Burma's National League for Democracy.

The Nobel Peace laureate has been under virtual house arrest since she tried to travel outside Rangoon a year ago, in defiance of official restrictions. Her National League for Democracy won a landslide victory in Burma's 1990 elections, but the military refused to recognize the results and never agreed to turn over power.

The government has released more than 200 political prisoners since the talks with Aung San Suu Kyi began 16 months ago, but there have been no major breakthroughs. The human-rights group Amnesty International estimates that Burma has more than 1,500 political prisoners in custody.

Mr. Pinheiro is making his third trip to Burma. His last visit was cut short in November when he became ill. He will report to the U.N. Commission on Human Rights at its session in Geneva in April.

Some information for this report provided by Reuters and AP.

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