"No time to lose" after Myanmar deal for storm aid

By Aung Hla Tun

YANGON (Reuters) - Disaster relief officials said there was "no time to lose" to help Myanmar's cyclone survivors after the secretive military government promised the United Nations it would allow in more aid workers.

The junta, criticised by the West for failing to accept a full-blown aid operation following the devastation of Cyclone Nargis three weeks ago, went ahead on Saturday with a referendum in the Irrawaddy Delta and Yangon on its new constitution.

The rice-growing Delta and the former capital were hit by the vicious storm in which nearly 134,000 people were left dead or missing. Disease, hunger, lack of shelter and medical treatment threaten up to 2.5 million people, according to United Nations humanitarian aid officials.

The plebiscite on the army-drafted constitution took place in the rest of the country on May 10 with a 92.4 percent approval after voters were repeatedly told by authorities to vote "Yes".

Voting started on Saturday in Yangon, the country's biggest city, but officials said many residents had voted in advance, including opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been under house arrest for five years.

In what was considered a breakthrough to ramp up aid to the delta, Senior General Than Shwe gave an assurance to visiting U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday that Myanmar would

allow in aid experts "of all nationalities" after weeks of restrictions.

"We have no more time to lose, so it's imperative that the Myanmar authorities immediately provide the international community with the practical details of the agreement," said Louis Michel, European commissioner for development and humanitarian aid.