Supporters and reporters started gathering outside Aung San Suu Kyi’s home in Rangoon today in the hundreds upon word she could be released from her house arrest at any moment. Burma’s a half-hour behind us, so it’s 10pm there, and she’s not been released yet, so not today after all.
Her house-arrest term expires on Saturday. Gee, only six days after their sham election. Imagine that!
It seems certain – at least, as certain as anything can be in that benighted country – that she will be freed within the next few days.
Ill believe it when I see it. I would not at all be surprised if suddenly the court system gets some evidence of some other crime, or some important reason she needs to be held in protective custody …
BBC is reporting the papers for her release have been signed. And they’ve let her go before, so this would not be the first time. I reckon now that the sham election is over, the junta can afford to be a little “magnanimous.”
She has purposely chosen in the past not to leave the country, because she suspects – no doubt correctly – that they would never allow her back in. IIRC, when her husband was dying of cancer in London, the junta offered to let her leave to go see him, but she refused for that very reason. She’s never expressed interest in asylum, and I would be very surprised if she sought it. I think she’s in for the duration.
I don’t see how it benefits the government to let her leave the country, anyway. At least this way, they can control who she talks to and meets with. If she leaves, they’re not going to be able to trust her to be quiet with the foreign press.
The government would love to get her out of the country. She stirs up too much shit by staying there. She’s too much of a magnet, a symbol for the people. But even they can’t deport an actual citizen. They’ve used her marriage to a foreigner to disqualify her from elected office, but they can’t get rid of her. But that is what they want, and if it seems irrational, well, remember who we’re dealing with here. I doubt they’d care what she does outside the country anyway, just so they get to rule their little fiefdom with an iron hand in peace.
She’s quite a problem to them. Probably the one person they don’t dare kill even if they did assassinate her father way back when. And yes, if she were to die of other causes, people would believe the junta had some hand in it. It could actually be the catalyst for a general uprising, not that I think it would be successful. During the 1988 uprising, hundreds, if not more, stood up and dared the troops to shoot, and they happily obliged. I don’t see the junta leaving anytime soon, unfortunately.
Saturday AM here now. Her house arrest officially ends today. We’ll see what happens. But I’m predicting it will be the same thing all over again: She’ll speak out, probably sooner rather than later, then back into detention again.
BBC reporting that the crowds have largely dispersed. A commentator says that it probably will still happen eventually, as the junta could use her release, coupled with the “democratic” election, to apply pressure too the international community for concessions.
She’s probably free for good this time. I think the government weighed the pros and cons and decided it a prudent PR move to free her. She’ll never run the country, and she’ll always have it over her head that if she opens her mouth to the wrong people she’ll immediately be placed under house arrest again.
Yes, The Lady is free. I don’t think many people would be willing to bet it’s “for good” this time though, as she’s showing no indication of going silently into the night. She’s asked her supporters to gather today (Sunday) so she can speak to them, I think at her party’s headquarters, and it’s certain that thousands will show up.
The consensus among the local pundits is that this is simply a cynical PR stunt by the junta, in light of the sham elections and ahead of what is felt to be an imminent military push against the ethnic rebels in the outer reaches, many of whom are starting to show signs of becoming uppity again.
Her youngest son, Kim, is here in Bangkok right now. The news said they spoke together on the phone after her release. He’s here trying to get a visa for Burma but has so far been refused. I missed it, but the wife said the local news followed him around Bangkok last week up to when he went to the Burmese Embassy – not far from where we live – and Surprise! The embassy was suddenly closed. Guess he should not have telegraphed his movements like that. But it wouldn’t have mattered anyway, as like I said, his application has since been denied anyway.
World Service reports that she will speak at 05:30 GMT. BBC have some correspondents in country, so it will get out, never mind what the Burmese government thinks.
Yes, that would be 12 noon local time. BBC had extensive live coverage of her release, other agencies too. I think coverage of the speech will be allowed. We’ll be watching.
BBC showed that on domestic TV, which is all state controlled, some sort of show featuring folk music was being aired at the time yesterday, with no mention of her release. Any coverage being allowed is purely for international consumption.
Did you just fall off the turnip truck? Had she been willing to cooperate with the military regime, she’d have been out a decade ago. She won’t cooperate now, it’s a PR stunt by the regime following the “election”, and pretty soon they will put her back in, or have her assassinated.