May 24 (Bloomberg) -- Myanmar's military regime is going ahead with a referendum in areas devastated by Cyclone Nargis, as the United Nations welcomed the junta's pledge to let international aid workers help with the relief effort.

The ballot on a draft constitution takes place today in the former capital, Yangon, and 47 townships in the Irrawaddy River delta, where villages, crops and livestock were washed away three weeks ago.

The U.S. has denounced the vote, saying the charter aims to prolong military rule in the country formerly known as Burma, and is calling on the junta to focus instead on providing humanitarian relief.

``The whole thing is a sham,'' Scot Marciel, the U.S. ambassador to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, told a Congressional hearing in Washington this week.

More than 130,000 people are dead or missing after the cyclone made landfall May 2-3 packing winds of 120 miles (190 kilometers) an hour. The UN estimates that only a quarter of 2.4 million people needing aid have been reached and Secretary- General Ban Ki-moon held talks with ruling generals this week to press for greater international access.

Junta's Pledge

Senior General Than Shwe yesterday told Ban the regime will allow aid workers to help with the relief effort, regardless of their nationalities.

``He has taken quite a flexible position on this matter,'' Ban told reporters yesterday. The military leader also said Yangon airport can be used to distribute international aid and that supplies can be delivered to the country in civilian ships.

Relief agencies welcomed the junta's pledge, though said it was unclear how freely they would be able to access the delta region. Steve Goudswaard of World Vision said he was waiting to see how the agreement ``works out in practice.''

Oxfam said it ``cautiously'' welcomed yesterday's announcement and called for all ``red tape'' slowing the aid effort to be lifted.

Delegates from 45 countries and regional bodies have registered to attend a donor conference tomorrow in Yangon sponsored by the UN and Asean. While the international community wants to focus on improving the aid effort, the ruling generals want money for reconstruction.

Disaster Zone

Today's referendum comes two weeks after areas outside the disaster zone voted on the constitution, and, according to state media, supported the charter with 92.4 percent of ballots cast.

That result ``lacked any credibility,'' Marciel said.

The constitution was drafted by a National Convention that began meeting in 2004 and completed its work last September. Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy and ethnic groups in the nation of 48 million people were excluded from the process.

The military government said in March it wouldn't allow UN observers to monitor the vote because the referendum is an internal matter.

The proposed charter allots 25 percent of seats in both houses of parliament to the military and requires a 75 percent majority of its lawmakers to approve any amendments.

The proposal also bars Suu Kyi, 62, who has spent 12 of the past 18 years under house arrest, from holding office on the grounds she was married to a U.K. national, Michael Aris, who died in 1999.

UN envoy to Myanmar Ibrahim Gambari said in March the military is considering returning the nation to civilian rule under a model similar to the government of late Indonesian President Suharto, who guaranteed the army seats in parliament.

Legal Immunity

The draft constitution allows the president to declare a state of emergency and transfer powers to the military's commander-in-chief for a year. It also grants legal immunity to officials during periods of military rule and reserves ministerial posts in defense, security and border affairs for members of the military.

Pro-democracy campaigners are demanding the junta releases Suu Kyi, saying its legal authority to detain her expires at the end of this month.

Under the State Protection Law, the regime can only hold someone deemed a security threat for five years without trial or charge, according to the Burma Campaign U.K.Suu Kyi has been under house arrest since May 2003.

To contact the reporter on this story: Ed Johnson in Sydney at ejohnson28@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: May 23, 2008 22:33 EDT