By Somchai Suwanban Head of the BBC's Burmese Service

Aung San Suu Kyi has the revival of her National League for Democracy political party as one of her top priorities.

The military government has systematically dismantled the organisation and infrastructure of the NLD during the past 10 years.

Many NLD political workers and grass roots activists have been forced to abandon their membership, some coerced into joining the government-sponsored Union, Solidarity and Development Association (USDA).

The NLD needs to attract younger members

The USDA has apparently become stronger during Aung San Suu Kyi's house arrest and it could turn into a political party should there be an election.

It is essential for Aung San Suu Kyi to go out and meet demoralised NLD members in order to breath new life into the party which won an overwhelming majority in the May 1990 elections.

The party is now almost defunct and left with an ageing executive committee and little inspiration among the rank and file.

Aung San Suu Kyi needs to rebuild the NLD's political structure and attract younger members up and down the country to work with her, 'to empower the powerless' as she put it.

Slow process

Aung San Suu Kyi will also be pushing for the release of more political prisoners.

Burma has turned a new page, but it will take quite a long time to fill in the blanks

But this will be difficult. The military government has no interest in setting free key political activists who would be able to strengthen the NLD's political appeal.

The government is actively supporting the USDA as a political proxy when the electoral battle lines are eventually drawn up.

But that may be a long way off. After almost 19 months of 'confidence building' talks, many people are now asking what comes next. Some ethnic leaders have said they want to be part of the next step.

But ethnic political aspiration has always been a thorny and complicated issue in Burmese politics. Some historians believe that the issue may be partly behind the 1947 assassination of Aung San, Aung San Suu Kyi's father.

After the confidence building phase, the military government and Aung San Suu Kyi will next engage in 'talk about talk' before the actual reconciliation can begin.

Burma has turned a new page, but it will take quite a long time to fill in the blanks.