Burma Going To Release Aung San Suu Kyi?
Ryan | Nov 09, 2009 | Comments 2
Burma’s opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, may soon be released so she can play a role in next year’s election, a senior Burmese diplomat has said.
“There is a plan to release her soon … so she can organise her party,” Min Lwin, a director-general in the foreign ministry, to ld the Associated Press. He gave no details and it was unclear whether Aung San Suu Kyi would be allowed to campaign or stand for election.
Despite the conciliatory remarks, the country’s constitution includes provisions that bar her from holding office and ensure the primacy of the government in the military.
The Nobel peace prize winner has spent 14 of the last 20 years under house arrest. In August a court sentenced her to an additional 18 months after an American, John Yettaw, swam across a lake to her villa in Rangoon and stayed overnight.
Burma’s junta in the the past has raised expectations of Aung San Suu Kyi’s imminent release only to dash the hopes of her supporters at home and abroad.
Pro-democracy campaigners cautioned against reading too much into the latest hints on Suu Kyi’s release. “They’ve been saying these sorts of things for a long time but they have never delivered on them,” said Anna Roberts, the director of the Burma Campaign UK. “The regime’s main concern is get economic sanctions lifted and get approval for the sham elections next year.”
Filed Under: Aung San Suu Kyi • Burma News
About the Author: About the Author: Ryan is a Co-Founder of eleho. He was introduced to Burma in 2005 while on a trip to visit a children's home in Mae Sot, and works on the business side of the organization. Feel free to contact with any questions or comments. ryan@eleho.org
One can only hope
Of course, even if they do actually release her they could just throw her right back in again on some other ridiculous “charge.” Everyone keep their fingers crossed, I’ll be praying for her release. 
Teresa, thanks for leaving the comment. We do hope that something will change and that she will see her freedom. Until that day comes we will continue to tell as many people as we can about what is happening in Burma.