( CNN ) -- Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was sworn in Wednesday as a lawmaker for the first time , a key step in the country 's recent shift toward democracy after decades of repressive military rule . Suu Kyi , a pro-democracy campaigner who spent years under house arrest , traveled to the parliament in the capital , Naypyidaw , to take up the seat she won in elections last month . It was a historic moment for the Nobel laureate , who has spent decades campaigning for , and being deprived of , human rights in Myanmar . Suu Kyi led her party to a landslide victory the previous time Myanmar held multiparty elections , in 1990 . But the military junta ignored the results and kept her under house arrest . She and 33 other newly elected members of her party , the National League for Democracy , took an oath of office for the lower house of parliament that they had initially refused to accept because of its wording , which called for protection of the country 's constitution . The NLD considers the constitution undemocratic and has said it wants to change it . The party had asked the Myanmar authorities to adjust the wording of the oath to say that lawmakers would `` abide by '' the constitution rather than `` protect '' it . Suu Kyi and the other recently elected NLD members delayed their debuts in parliament over the issue , but the government of President Thein Sein , a former military official , made no sign of moving to accommodate the request . On Monday , Suu Kyi and the NLD backed down from the demand to have the wording changed , ending the impasse . Suu Kyi said she would take the oath `` for the country and for the people . '' She added that her decision had been encouraged by voters , parliament members and representatives of Myanmar 's ethnic minority groups . During a visit to Myanmar this week , U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed support for Suu Kyi 's climbdown over the oath . `` Real leaders demonstrate flexibility for the greater cause , '' he said after meeting with her at her lakeside residence in Yangon . U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton congratulated Suu Kyi and her party on the occasion of their swearing-in . `` This is an important moment for Burma 's future . A genuine transition toward multi-party democracy leading to general elections in 2015 will help build a more prosperous society , '' Clinton said in a statement , using the other name for Myanmar . `` I encourage all political parties , civil society representatives and ethnic minority leaders to work together to address challenges and seize new opportunities for a more democratic , free , peaceful , and prosperous future . '' Myanmar 's authoritarian military rulers are loosening their grip on power after decades of stifling dissent and limiting freedoms . Thein Sein 's civilian government was sworn in just over a year ago . In the past 12 months , the government has pardoned hundreds of political prisoners , secured a cease-fire with Karen rebels and agreed to negotiate with other ethnic rebel groups . The success of Suu Kyi and her party at the by-elections last month -- the NLD won 43 seats , 34 of them in the lower house -- was welcomed by the United States and European Union as a sign of progress toward democracy . Her presence in parliament Wednesday illustrates the pace at which Myanmar is changing : She was released from house arrest less than a year and a half ago . Next month , she will make her first trip overseas in more than two decades . She plans to visit Norway to make a belated acceptance speech for the Nobel Peace Prize she was prevented from collecting in 1991 because she was in detention . She took her seat in the chamber Wednesday alongside incumbent legislators , many of whom are former military officials . Myanmar 's legislature has 664 seats , more than 80 % of which are still held by lawmakers aligned with the military-backed ruling group , the Union Solidarity and Development Party . Control of parliament will not change , but the entry of the NLD members nonetheless gives the party a notable presence . Many Western governments have taken steps to ease sanctions on Myanmar , also known as Burma , in response to its political reforms . But international officials have also cautioned that the country still has a long way to go . Speaking last week ahead of his trip , the United Nations ' Ban said that Myanmar 's `` fresh start is still fragile . '' CNN 's Kocha Olarn , Paula Hancocks and Jethro Mullen contributed to this report .
Suu Kyi and 33 other members of her party were elected to the lower house . They had delayed their parliamentary debuts over the wording of the oath of office . The opposition said it would boycott parliament until a new constitution is adopted that guarantees freedom for all citizens regardless of race, religion or gender. A previous election success by Suu Kyi 's party in 1990 was ignored by the military rulers .