As of Wednesday, the Burmese democracy campaigner Aung San Suu Kyi will have spent a total of 20 years in detention in Myanmar, five of them since her government was overthrown by a military coup in February 2021. Almost nothing is known about her state of health or the conditions she is living in, though she is presumed to be held in a military prison in Nay Pyi Taw. 'For all I know she could be dead,' her son Kim Aris said last month, although a spokesman for the ruling military junta insisted she is in good health.
She has not seen her lawyers for at least two years, nor is she known to have seen anyone else except prison personnel. After the coup, she was given jail sentences totaling 27 years on what are widely viewed as fabricated charges. Yet despite her disappearance from public view, she still casts a long shadow over Myanmar. There are repeated calls for her release, along with appeals to the generals to end their ruinous campaign against the armed opposition and negotiate an end to the civil war that has now dragged on for five years.
The military has tried to remove her once ubiquitous image, but faded posters of 'The Lady' or 'Amay Su', Mother Su, as she is affectionately known, can still be found in tucked away corners. There is speculation about whether she could still play a role in settling the conflict between the soldiers and the people of Myanmar.
Back in 2010, after nearly half a century of military rule, the military organized a general election aimed at excluding Aung San Suu Kyi's popular National League for Democracy. Despite the current oppression, history tells us that change is possible. If the military junta moves towards a semblance of democracy, questions of her release and her potential to reshape Myanmar's future will undoubtedly arise, making her a significant figure in the ongoing political landscape.
She has not seen her lawyers for at least two years, nor is she known to have seen anyone else except prison personnel. After the coup, she was given jail sentences totaling 27 years on what are widely viewed as fabricated charges. Yet despite her disappearance from public view, she still casts a long shadow over Myanmar. There are repeated calls for her release, along with appeals to the generals to end their ruinous campaign against the armed opposition and negotiate an end to the civil war that has now dragged on for five years.
The military has tried to remove her once ubiquitous image, but faded posters of 'The Lady' or 'Amay Su', Mother Su, as she is affectionately known, can still be found in tucked away corners. There is speculation about whether she could still play a role in settling the conflict between the soldiers and the people of Myanmar.
Back in 2010, after nearly half a century of military rule, the military organized a general election aimed at excluding Aung San Suu Kyi's popular National League for Democracy. Despite the current oppression, history tells us that change is possible. If the military junta moves towards a semblance of democracy, questions of her release and her potential to reshape Myanmar's future will undoubtedly arise, making her a significant figure in the ongoing political landscape.
