Aung San Suu Kyi

I first read the name Aung San Suu Kyi no more than a month ago, and as of last last week, she has finally been freed from her roughly 20-year-long house arrest.

Firstly, an introduction to one of the most impressive human beings in history.  Aung San Suu Kyi in no less than a modern-day, Burmese Ghandi or Martin Luther King. Her fight for democracy in Burma has lost her nearly everything- not only did she lose her freedom, her imprisonment isolated her from her family for longer than most of us could bear thinking about, ultimately resulting in her not being present when her husband died. She does not know what her children currently look like, they have grown too much since she last saw them.

Lots of people, including this BBC correspondent: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11774522, have questioned the reasons Burma’s military government has for releasing Aung San Suu Kyi. It has been suggested that there is some elaborate game being played by General Than Shwe, the supreme leader, in suppressing resistance against his leadership. At any rate, it’s certainly probable that the junta does not see Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD) as a threat any more.
If this is the case, then it is up to the international community to prove them wrong.

Democratic governments in Asia and the West need to call out for democracy in Burma, louder than ever before. The release of Aung San Suu Kyi will re-spark resistance in Burma, and we can amplify that spark internationally to put even more pressure on the unjust Myanmar government. So let’s be proactive about this. Please, if you’re reading, write to MPs, write to newspapers, form student groups, organise marches, all with one intention- convincing the government of Britain or whatever country you are in to declare official support for the NDL ‘s cause, or even to go as far as declaring they do not recognise the Union of Myanmar as a legitimate state.
There is no dispute here. Unlike in Tibet and Israel/Palestine, there are no complicated arguments about who has the rights which land. The military in Burma seized power brutishly from the people who live in it, and if we believe in democracy, liberty or humanity, then we must oppose them.

I urge anyone reading this to stand up and speak out for Burma. We in Europe, North America and most of South East Asia are lucky enough to live in places where the public voice can and does make a difference, so let’s not waste that. Let’s use democracy to fight for democracy.

Make sure the sacrifices of Aung San Suu Kyi do not go to waste. She, if anyone, deserves to see a democratic Burma. Let’s give her that, since she’s given so much.

*Side note: the reason I have used the name ‘Burma’ in all instances when I am not referring to the official state, is that that is the name the country had until the military junta chose to rename it Myanmar. So Burma is a more appropriate name when speaking pro-Burmese democracy.