In case you haven’t heard yet. From the Guardian:
The Burmese military junta has released pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest. The Nobel laureate, who has been detained for 15 of the past 21 years, was greeted by jubilant crowds who had gathered in Rangoon in anticipation of her release.
[…] “If we work in unity, we will achieve our goal. We have a lot of things to do,” she said.
[…] Thousands of people wore T-shirts bearing her image and the words, “We stand with Aung San Suu Kyi”. It is a T-shirt that would have landed them in jail a few weeks ago.
I’m going to second what President Obama said: Aung San Suu Kyi has long been a personal hero of mine, and I’m thrilled beyond belief that she’s free from house arrest. It still bears mentioning, though – she’s been released before under the condition that she stop speaking out and organizing against the military junta. She has always refused to do so and landed back in house arrest. It should also be noted that the junta doesn’t seem to be going anywhere. International actions haven’t moved them from power, but it is clear that the military rulers would like to be able to fully rejoin the community of nations (just as they’ve been afraid to move against Aung San Suu Kyi in a more aggressive way than the muzzle of a house arrest).
The next weeks will be telling, but regardless – for today, this is truly, truly wonderful news.
I was thrilled when I heard on the radio that she’d been released. I can’t imagine that she’ll keep quiet, so I’m hoping they won’t put her back under house arrest.
I suspect she has learned to make the most of her brief spells of freedom.