Bush to blast Burma over Suu Kyi

The Australian ^ | October 18 2003 | AFP

[knighthawk]

Bangkok: Burma's junta faces a roasting from US President George W. Bush at next week's APEC leaders meetings over the continued detention of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Bangkok: Burma's junta faces a roasting from US President George W. Bush at next week's APEC leaders meetings over the continued detention of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Mr Bush also is expected to urge APEC leaders to do more to push for democratic reforms in Burma, which has been run for four decades by the military.

Mr Bush's National Security Adviser, Condoleezza Rice, has said the President will make clear his concern for the welfare of Ms Suu Kyi, who is under house arrest in the Burmese capital, Rangoon.

"We have been in constant contact with the UN representative about this and asking that she be visited and that we know her state," Dr Rice said this week.

"You can believe the President will talk quite a lot about the need for freedom in Burma" in talks with Thai leaders, among others, she added. Burma is not a member of APEC although it is a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which met earlier this month in Bali.

At that meeting regional leaders failed to criticise the junta's deplorable human rights record.

Instead, they hailed recent events in the military-run state as "positive developments", saying international sanctions would not help bring about democratic change.

The US and the EU tightened sanctions on Burma after Ms Suu Kyi was detained after a bloody clash between her supporters and pro-junta demonstrators on May 30.

She was admitted to hospital last month for major gynaecological surgery and afterwards taken to her home to begin her third stint under house arrest since beginning her political career in 1988.

[knighthawk]

Ping

[OldFriend]

When her husband was dying she was offerred the right to leave the country and refused. The man died while she remained behind. Exactly what she has accomplished all these years is beyond me.

Forgive me, but she reminds me of Butterfuly girl who sat in the tree to save it.

[nuconvert]

This is really incredible .
And goes unreported by our media.

"taken to her home to begin her third stint under house arrest since beginning her political career in 1988."

I doubt many people are aware of this situation.
She was voted overwhelmingly, to lead the country.
And here she sits under house arrest all these years.

Also, she won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991. (which of course she was unable to collect herself, since she was under house arrest)

[Consort]

What happened to Myanmar?

[nuconvert]

If she left the country to be with her husband, she wouldn't have been allowed back in.
Who knew it would go on for so long?
What should she do now? The people are behind her,
she has President Bush's attention, should she give up now?
The only thing they will allow her to do is leave the country and not come back. That doesn't do much for her supporters who are trying to get the country back away from the military.

[OldFriend]

For twelve years her family has been abandoned and her husband died alone in another country. She has teenaged children that have been neglected all this time and I don't see what has been accomplished.

[JohnnyZ]

What happened to Myanmar?

The US Govt. never officially recognized "Myanmar".

[Tailgunner Joe]

I suspect they'll be calling it Burma again after the ruling commie junta is routed from power.