Than Shwe had replaced Yangon in the previous year, and permitted Gambari to meet with Aung San Suu Kyi. However, Than Shwe refused to meet Gambari when he visited Burma in November 2007 and again on 10 March 2008. In early May 2008, Than Shwe refused many foreign aid workers from entering the country in the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis (May 2, 2008). This led to many criticisms from the UN as well as the international community. In early July 2009, the UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon visited Burma and held talks with General Than Shwe. The military junta rejected UN
Cyclone Nargis its aid back undelivered. On 27 May, to complicate world opinion and in contrast to numerous and varied accounts from international relief organisations, the Burmese junta praised U.N. aid. On 5 June 2008, Amnesty International released a report saying that at least thirty people had been evicted from refugee camps. The report also indicated that the military was horse-trading aid for physical labour. Despite objections raised by the Burmese opposition parties and foreign nations in the wake of the natural disaster, the junta proceeded with a previously scheduled (10 May 2008) constitutional referendum. Voting however was postponed until 24 May