She was also treated with regal respect when regional commanders and officials welcomed her and her party leaders to a tour of dam- and road- building projects.

Even her fiercest opponent, Than Shwe, and his top brass conceded to dine with the Suu Kyi and her team at that time.

But then it all went pear-shaped. Suu Kyi's political tours drew hundreds of thousands of supporters wherever she went. The euphoria and adulation for the Nobel Peace Prize laureate convinced the military junta that she must be stopped by hook or by crook. She spent the next seven years under house arrest.

This time round, pundits say, the new civilian offshoot of the previous regime is eager to demonstrate that they don’t belong to the past and that they are different, changed, evolved.

Optimists opine that in spite of the ongoing power struggle within the government, Thein Sein, who served under Than Shwe for many years, is more reform-minded, will more likely tolerate opposition, and could find it expedient to make a deal with Suu Kyi.

For the first time in a generation, the reformers within the government may have the upper hand.

Be that as it may, critics are quite correct to point out that the government is eager to present a cleaner image ahead of the decision by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) on whether to allow Burma to chair the regional bloc in 2014.

They say the olive branch offered to Suu Kyi and the opposition, as well as an invitation to Burmese exiles to return home, are hollow gestures aimed as gaining international credibility.

During her talks with the liaison minister, Suu Kyi reportedly aired widespread concerns about the conflicts in Kachin, Shan and Karen states. Whatever assurances she received, skeptics caution that the previous regime’s divide-and-rule strategy between ethnic and democratic forces will come back into play—that the regime will want to exclude the ethnic groups from the dialogue.

In anticipation of this policy, Burma's democratic forces and ethnic nationalities must play ball to ensure that national reconciliation takes on a more harmonious quality.

In addition to insisting that ethnic armed groups be included in political dialogue, we must maintain our guarded optimism, and keep requesting the government to free all political prisoners. Without a successful resolution of these issues, Burma will never achieve peace and stability.

Most argue, though, that whatever deep skepticism exists, it is now time to move in a direction that will make the government and president of Burma accountable.

Of course, everyone wants to see actions, not just words. To gauge whether the government is prepared to take those meaningful steps, we will require Suu Kyi to drive that long lonely highway to Naypyidaw several more times.

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                         Cautious Optimism and Continued Vigilance