Myanmar's Tin Oo, pro-democracy general who co-founded Suu Kyi's party, dies at 97

FILE PHOTO: Tin Oo (C), a patron of the National League for Democracy (NLD), points out other party members at a ceremony to mark the 25th anniversary of the founding of the NLD at the political party's head office in Yangon September 27, 2013. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun/File Photo

(Reuters) - Tin Oo, a towering figure in Myanmar's pro-democracy movement and close ally of detained Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, died on Saturday at age 97, political associates and close friends said.

Tin Oo had a pivotal role with Suu Kyi in the 1988 creation of the National League for Democracy (NLD), which suffered two decades of persecution over its non-violent struggle against military dictatorship.