Aung San Suu Kyi | Archives of Women’s Political Communication

aung san suu kyi was myanmar’s first female state councilor from 2016 to 2021. on feb. On January 1, 2021, she was arrested by the Myanmar military after they declared the November 2020 general election results fraudulent and imposed a one-year state of emergency.

suu kyi was born in rangoon, burma – now yangon, myanmar – on june 19, 1945. her father is known as the founder of independent burma (1948) and is loved in that country. her mother had been active in women’s political groups before she married aung san, and the couple often held political meetings at her home. In July 1947, Aung San and most of her cabinet were assassinated by members of an opposition political group.

suu kyi spent her early years in burma. She was later joined by her mother, who was appointed Burma’s ambassador to India in 1960. She was educated partially in secondary school in India and later attended St. hugh’s college, oxford university, england, where she earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees. She was also influenced by the teachings of Indian leader Mohandas Gandhi (1869-1948), who believed in nonviolent civil disobedience.

for two years, suu kyi worked at the united nations in new york, new york. In 1972 she married Michael Vaillancourt Aris, a scholar she had met while studying at Oxford. They had two children and settled in England. She served as a Visiting Scholar at the Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Kyoto University, Japan, from 1985 to 1986, and at the Indian Institute of Advanced Study in Simla, India, in 1987.

After her mother suffered a stroke in 1988, Suu Kyi returned to Myanmar. Later that year, there was a revolt against the administration associated with the military-led Socialist Party of Burma. In August 1988, Suu Kyi gained national recognition as leader of the National League for Democracy (NLD), which later opposed the military-led State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC). she became general secretary (and later president) of the nld and spoke out for democracy across the country. The Slorc placed her under house arrest on July 20, 1989 for trying to split up the army, a charge she denied. she remained under house arrest for nearly 15 of the next 21 years, making her one of the world’s foremost political prisoners.

Although Suu Kyi was not allowed to run for office in the May 1990 elections, the NLD won 80 percent of the legislative seats. however, the winning candidates were never allowed to take office. The United Nations called for her release, as did other national and international groups, including Amnesty International, the world human rights organization. She has won many awards for democracy and human rights, including the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought (European Parliament, 1991), the Nobel Peace Prize (1991), and the Simón Bolívar International Prize (1992). she was finally released in November 2010.

in april 2012, suu kyi was elected to parliament and in 2016 she was elected as a state councillor. While serving as a state councilor, Suu Kyi was criticized for the persecution of the Rohingya people and for the prosecutions of journalists in Myanmar.

in the november 2020 parliamentary elections, the nld won a majority, although the results were disputed by the army and the union solidarity and development party (usdp). On February 1, 2021, the new parliament was due to hold its first session, but the military seized power and arrested Suu Kyi and other NLD leaders. vice. president myint swe became acting president and declared a year-long state of emergency and takeover of the government. Police charged Suu Kyi with illegally imported walkie-talkies in his room and violating Myanmar’s natural disaster management law during the COVID-19 pandemic. As of her sentencing on October 12, 2022, Suu Kyi has been sentenced to at least 26 years in prison and is still facing charges from the Myanmar Army.

sources:

the nobel prize (n.d.). “aung san suu kyi – facts” spread of the nobel prize. accessed 24 October 2022. https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1991/kyi/facts/

pletcher, k. (1998, July 20). “aung san suu kyi” british. accessed 24 October 2022. https://www.britannica.com/biography/aung-san-suu-kyi

Reuters (2022, October 12). “Fact Box: Legal Cases Against Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi” Reuters/ Accessed 24 October 2022. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/legal-cases-against-myanmars-aung- san-suu-kyi-2022-09-02/