YANGON, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- New United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Myanmar Tomas Ojea Quintana arrived here Sunday to begin his first mission to look into the human rights situation in the country, according to diplomatic sources.

    During his five-day trip in Myanmar, Quintana is expected to meet government officials, representatives of ethnic groups, political parties and non-governmental organizations.

    He is also expected to tour areas in Yangon and Ayeyawaddy divisions affected by a severe cyclone storm in early last May.

    Quintana's Myanmar visit came more than eight months after the last visit of former UN human rights envoy Paulo Sergio Pinheiro in November 2007.

    Pinheiro met with six Myanmar ministers and some senior-level officials from the Ministry of Home Affairs, Law Enforcement, the Yangon Division Peace and Development Council and the Yangon General Hospital, as well as senior abbots of the State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee (the State Governing Body of the Buddhist Clergy), according to then statement of the U.N. Information Center (UNIC).