U.S.: Myanmar expels U.N. diplomat

(CNN) -- The United Nations said Friday it was "disappointed" that Myanmar's government had expelled a top U.N. diplomat, and the Bush administration condemned the action by the ruling military junta in the secretive Asian country.

"The secretary-general is disappointed by the message from the government of Myanmar that it would not want the resident coordinator, Mr. Charles Petrie, to continue to serve," said a statement issued on behalf of U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

U.S. National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe called the expulsion of Petrie, the U.N.'s human rights representative, "outrageous" and noted it came the day before Ibrahim Gambari, the special U.N. envoy to Myanmar, is scheduled to return to the country.

It is "an insult to the United Nations and the international community," Johndroe said.

The U.S. charge d'affaires in Myanmar , Shari Villarosa, told CNN earlier Friday that Petrie was told he was no longer welcome in the country.

"They say that they are interested in cooperating with the U.N.," Villarosa said, "so this seems very unusual to say the least."

It was unclear whether Petrie was given a deadline to leave the country.

In the statement, a spokesman for Ban said he "has full confidence in the United Nations country team." Ban has instructed Ibrahim Gambari "to convey his views directly to the authorities" in Myanmar upon his arrival, the statement said.

It will be the second visit to Myanmar in recent weeks for Gambari, who has a five-day visa.

The United Nations does not know who Gambari will be meeting with, but it is hoped that the envoy will facilitate talks between ruling generals and Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, an opposition leader and human rights activist who has been under house arrest on and off for nearly 20 years.

In his October meeting, Gambari met with the military junta leadership as well as with Suu Kyi.

"What everybody has been seeking is the initiation of a genuine dialogue that leads toward broad national reconciliation," Villarosa said.

More than 70 Buddhist monks marched in the central Myanmar town of Pakokku on Wednesday, dissident sources in Mae Sot told CNN. The march is the first reported since a government crackdown on peaceful pro-democracy demonstrations in September, in which as many as 110 people are believed to have been killed, including 40 Buddhist monks.

The protests were sparked by a huge fuel price increase imposed by the military government, and quickly escalated.

Myanmar's military junta admitted in mid-October that is detained more than 2,900 people during the crackdown, and many of them are still believed to be in custody.

Video smuggled out of the secretive country has shown unarmed protesters being beaten by government security forces, and one man -- a Japanese journalist -- shot and killed at close range.

Myanmar's humanitarian crisis has sparked international outrage, concern and attention.

"We support Gambari's mission to bring about a peaceful transition to democracy in Burma," said Johndroe, using the traditional English-language name for Myanmar. "The junta needs to allow the ICRC (International Committee of the Red Cross) into the country, release political prisoners and stop detaining its citizens who are peacefully protesting the repressive regime."

Johndroe said reports that the junta has again restricted the nation's Internet access "are very troubling. They are trying to hide their atrocities from the world." E-mail to a friend

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