U.N. officials expressed hope they will soon be able to get help to more than 1 million cyclone survivors waiting for food and shelter, if Myanmar's ruling junta keeps its promise to let foreign aid workers into the country.

However, refusing to bow to international pressure that persuaded it to allow in foreign aid, the military regime on May 27 extended the house arrest of pro-democracy heroine Aung San Suu Kyi by one year.

Since the storm people have remained huddled along roadsides, desperate for handouts. The U.N. estimated less than half the 2.4 million people victimized by the May 2-3 storm had received assistance.

In Pyapon, a coastal township southwest of Yangon, women and children squatted outside, the children begging for food as vehicles passed. The survivors said they had not received any aid from Myanmar's military government.

Myanmar authorities have been driving up and down the road since late May telling people by loudspeaker to go home. But many homes remain waist-deep in water.

Richard Horsey, a spokesman for the U.N. humanitarian operation in Bangkok, said May 26 that aid could soon start flowing to those who need it most if the junta quickly allows foreign experts into devastated areas.

The government has barred nearly all aid workers and international relief agencies from the Irrawaddy River Delta since Cyclone Nargis hit.

Referring to U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki Moon's announcement May 23 that the junta's leader agreed to let aid workers into hard-hit areas, Horsey said: "It is critical that that gets translated to practical access on the ground. The signs are good."