After a considerable amount of lobbying in 2011, the Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi was given the Freedom of Newcastle – the city’s highest honour awarded by the city council. It was a hopeful time. She had just been released from years of house arrest and her party, the National League of Democracy, was by far the most popular political party in Myanmar.
Then, in what was the first free and fair election in Myanmar since the military came to power in March 1962, the National League of Democracy won 59% of the seats. Aung San Suu Kyi became ‘State Counsellor’, after being forbidden from presidency as a result of her marriage to a British national, Michael Aris.
It looked for a while that the long dark night of suffering might finally be coming to an end for the people of Myanmar. However, it soon became clear that the real power in Myanmar still lay with the military, which in August 2017 began genocidal actions against the long oppressed Rohingya minority in the western Rakhine state of Myanmar.
It was hoped that Aung San Suu Kyi would speak out about this genocide, but she did no such thing. Indeed, in all my years of human rights activism, this was one for the saddest episodes I have seen: the fall from grace of an icon, who seemed to be following in the venerable footsteps of people like Gandhi, Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela.
Her fall from grace was swift amongst the international community and before long, Newcastle City Council had voted to rescind their award of the Freedom of Newcastle to Aung San Suu Kyi.
As for the person who had first nominated her for Freedom of Newcastle, alas that was me. I could only look on and wonder where it had all gone wrong. It had seemed like a good idea at the time…
Then in the military coup of February 2021, Aung San Suu Kyi was arrested on corruption charges.
So, what is the situation regarding Aung San Suu Kyi today – as people in Myanmar go to the polls in new elections, which have been widely and heavily criticised as being neither free, fair nor inclusive?
Where is Aung San Suu Kyi now?
It was noted prior to the new elections that the absence of Aung San Suu Kyi looms large over the polls, even though she has been kept firmly in military detention since the 2021 coup.
It was also noted in the Guardian that, “Aung San Suu Kyi’s reputation abroad is heavily tarnished over her government’s handling of the Rohingya crisis. But for her many followers in Myanmar her name is still a byword for democracy, her absence on the ballot an indictment it will be neither free nor fair”.
Aung San Suu Kyi, who is now 80 years old, is currently serving a 27-year sentence for offences ranging from corruption, to breaching Covid-19 restrictions. These are charges which rights groups claim are politically motivated. It was also pointed out that, “little has been seen or heard of her since her arrest and concerns over her health in custody have been raised by her family and supporters”.
Meanwhile her son Kim Aris commented from his home in Britain: “I don’t think she would consider these elections to be meaningful in any way”.
Yvette Cooper leads push to free Aung San Suu Kyi
Then it was reported on 28 December that UK Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper was leading a push to get Aung San Suu Kyi freed and was deeply concerned about her ongoing imprisonment alongside the situation in the country more generally.
A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson was reported as saying: “The UK government continues to condemn the detention of Aung San Suu Kyi. The military regime must release her and all those who are arbitrarily detained. The UK continues to shine a spotlight on Myanmar, including through our role at the UN Security Council.”
Meanwhile, Aung San Suu Kyi’s former economic policy adviser Sean Turnell, who himself spent 650 days in custody after the coup, claimed that the election was an “an utter sham.”
Turnell also commented: “It’s not even close to being a fair election. I wish we were using a different word than ‘election’ – a label that conveys nothing about this act of public intimidation that seeks to put lipstick on a particularly grotesque pig.”
The danger of uncritical hero worship of Aung San Suu Kyi
I asked Zoya Phan from Burma Campaign UK for her views on the issue of Aung San Suu Kyi, her imprisonment and her record in government:
“The military are planning to stay absolutely in control. It’s very important for the international community right at the get-go to call the election out for what it is. Because this is really nothing but theatre.
“All political prisoners including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi must be released. As in the past, the Burmese military detain Daw Aung San Suu Kyi because they fear her. Her party, the NLD, has won every election they have been able to stand in.
“There is a danger of uncritical hero worship of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. No-one questions the sacrifices that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has made for Burma, but when she was in power, she continued with laws and policies which violated human rights, and that can’t all be blamed on the limits the NLD led government operated under. Unconditional worship of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, denying her role in human rights violations like keeping repressive laws in place and political prisoners in jail, and restricting international aid to displaced people, is not healthy for our country. We have to be able to have an honest conversation, not try to rewrite history.
“Daw Aung San Suu Kyi chose to keep a flashing ‘Fake Rape’ sign on her Facebook Page and website saying reports of the mass rape of Rohingya women were fake, even after diplomats raised concerns. That was her choice.
“Unfortunately, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s own human rights record when in power has had big implications for our country after the coup. It has resulted in much less international attention and support, because people who want to support human rights don’t want to support someone who didn’t respect human rights and who defended human rights violations”.
To learn more about the work of Burma Campaign UK and how you can help the people of Myanmar, please see here.
Peter SagarAfter a considerable amount of lobbying in 2011, the Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi was given the Freedom of Newcastle – the city’s highest honour awarded by the city council. It was a hopeful time. She had just been released from years of house arrest and her party, the National League of Democracy, was by far the most popular political party in Myanmar.
Then, in what was the first free and fair election in Myanmar since the military came to power in March 1962, the National League of Democracy won 59% of the seats. Aung San Suu Kyi became ‘State Counsellor’, after being forbidden from presidency as a result of her marriage to a British national, Michael Aris.
It looked for a while that the long dark night of suffering might finally be coming to an end for the people of Myanmar. However, it soon became clear that the real power in Myanmar still lay with the military, which in August 2017 began genocidal actions against the long oppressed Rohingya minority in the western Rakhine state of Myanmar.
It was hoped that Aung San Suu Kyi would speak out about this genocide, but she did no such thing. Indeed, in all my years of human rights activism, this was one for the saddest episodes I have seen: the fall from grace of an icon, who seemed to be following in the venerable footsteps of people like Gandhi, Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela.
Her fall from grace was swift amongst the international community and before long, Newcastle City Council had voted to rescind their award of the Freedom of Newcastle to Aung San Suu Kyi.
As for the person who had first nominated her for Freedom of Newcastle, alas that was me. I could only look on and wonder where it had all gone wrong. It had seemed like a good idea at the time…
Then in the military coup of February 2021, Aung San Suu Kyi was arrested on corruption charges.
So, what is the situation regarding Aung San Suu Kyi today – as people in Myanmar go to the polls in new elections, which have been widely and heavily criticised as being neither free, fair nor inclusive?
Where is Aung San Suu Kyi now?
It was noted prior to the new elections that the absence of Aung San Suu Kyi looms large over the polls, even though she has been kept firmly in military detention since the 2021 coup.
It was also noted in the Guardian that, “Aung San Suu Kyi’s reputation abroad is heavily tarnished over her government’s handling of the Rohingya crisis. But for her many followers in Myanmar her name is still a byword for democracy, her absence on the ballot an indictment it will be neither free nor fair”.
Aung San Suu Kyi, who is now 80 years old, is currently serving a 27-year sentence for offences ranging from corruption, to breaching Covid-19 restrictions. These are charges which rights groups claim are politically motivated. It was also pointed out that, “little has been seen or heard of her since her arrest and concerns over her health in custody have been raised by her family and supporters”.
Meanwhile her son Kim Aris commented from his home in Britain: “I don’t think she would consider these elections to be meaningful in any way”.
Yvette Cooper leads push to free Aung San Suu Kyi
Then it was reported on 28 December that UK Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper was leading a push to get Aung San Suu Kyi freed and was deeply concerned about her ongoing imprisonment alongside the situation in the country more generally.
A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson was reported as saying: “The UK government continues to condemn the detention of Aung San Suu Kyi. The military regime must release her and all those who are arbitrarily detained. The UK continues to shine a spotlight on Myanmar, including through our role at the UN Security Council.”
Meanwhile, Aung San Suu Kyi’s former economic policy adviser Sean Turnell, who himself spent 650 days in custody after the coup, claimed that the election was an “an utter sham.”
Turnell also commented: “It’s not even close to being a fair election. I wish we were using a different word than ‘election’ – a label that conveys nothing about this act of public intimidation that seeks to put lipstick on a particularly grotesque pig.”
The danger of uncritical hero worship of Aung San Suu Kyi
I asked Zoya Phan from Burma Campaign UK for her views on the issue of Aung San Suu Kyi, her imprisonment and her record in government:
“The military are planning to stay absolutely in control. It’s very important for the international community right at the get-go to call the election out for what it is. Because this is really nothing but theatre.
“All political prisoners including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi must be released. As in the past, the Burmese military detain Daw Aung San Suu Kyi because they fear her. Her party, the NLD, has won every election they have been able to stand in.
“There is a danger of uncritical hero worship of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. No-one questions the sacrifices that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has made for Burma, but when she was in power, she continued with laws and policies which violated human rights, and that can’t all be blamed on the limits the NLD led government operated under. Unconditional worship of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, denying her role in human rights violations like keeping repressive laws in place and political prisoners in jail, and restricting international aid to displaced people, is not healthy for our country. We have to be able to have an honest conversation, not try to rewrite history.
“Daw Aung San Suu Kyi chose to keep a flashing ‘Fake Rape’ sign on her Facebook Page and website saying reports of the mass rape of Rohingya women were fake, even after diplomats raised concerns. That was her choice.
“Unfortunately, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s own human rights record when in power has had big implications for our country after the coup. It has resulted in much less international attention and support, because people who want to support human rights don’t want to support someone who didn’t respect human rights and who defended human rights violations”.
To learn more about the work of Burma Campaign UK and how you can help the people of Myanmar, please see here.
