Myanmar is stepping up preparations for its first elections in two decades, designating constituencies for its national and regional parliaments. State media report today said under the 2008 constitution, one quarter of the seats in parliament are reserved for the military. Detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi – who has spent much of the past 20 years in jail or under house arrest – is barred from standing because she is a serving prisoner. Her party, the National League for Democracy, opted to boycott the vote because of rules laid down by the military that in effect would have forced it to expel Suu Kyi and other members in prison in order to participate. Former NLD spokesman Nyan Win told reporters after meeting with Suu Kyi at her lakeside house that the NLD is planning to sue the government again later this month over the elections. Nyan Win added since no election data has yet been announced it can be assumed that the situation is not normal.