by C. Fink
BurmaNet (July 18, 1995)
(These comments and observations come from a private 15 minute interview in Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's house on the afternoon of July 18th. Like all other foreign journalists who have interviewed her, I was photographed and videotaped by the "guards" who were on duty at the gate. Aung San Suu Kyi has held two press conferences and many private interviews with journalists in the days since her release. Every day she also meets with representatives of various embassies, NLD party members, and other close friends. At 3pm every afternoon, she climbs up a step-ladder inside her gate to give a ten minute speech in Burmese to Burmese citizens who have come to see her. The crowd, which numbers several hundred each day, respond with delight to her jokes and willingly agree to her pleas for both support and restraint.)
Despite her busy morning of meetings with NLD party members, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi looked vibrant and full of energy when she met with me at 1:30 this afternoon. The fresh flower clipped into her neat bun suggested her unfailing optimism, although the political dilemmas she is facing would dishearten virtually anyone else in her position.
The SLORC has not made any further moves to release political prisoners nor have they lifted regulations on political activities or relaxed censorship. While many observers have commented on her frequently stated willingness to negotiate with the SLORC on almost any issue, her demeanor and many of her comments indicate that she will not rest until democracy is restored.
In talking about her future political activities, she insisted that she would not do anything clandestinely. She believes in honesty and openness and expects the same from the SLORC.
She commented, with a laugh, that SLORC officials used to lie to her, but she told them "you must stop, because you are committing a sin and I don't believe you, so you don't get anything out of it." Now, she says, they are more truthful with her, and she sees this as a very positive first step.
Nevertheless, she has informed SLORC officials that she will be having foreign embassy staff checking her house for bugs, so the SLORC better quickly remove any they have planted. The person she talked to insisted that SLORC had not hidden any secret microphones in her house, but she said that she was just warning them so that they would not be embarrassed later.
Moreover, she told the officials that if they put her in Insein Prison, they could do whatever they wanted to her, but as long as she was in her own house, she would do whatever she wanted. She added, "I ask them questions, not the other way around. I am not afraid of them."
Nevertheless, she is clearly being cautious. She has only left her house for a few private visits and has not even been downtown yet. She noted that others had told her of the many highrises that are being built downtown, and she hoped that "Rangoon does not become like Bangkok."
She went on to discuss the criticism U Aung Shwe received for expelling her from the NLD before the 1990 election. She said that she felt very sorry that others had blamed him, because he had done exactly what he had to do. "If he had not kept the party going, I would not have had any organization to come back to."
As for the Burmese students abroad, she urged them not to come home yet. She said that she knows how anxious they must be to return home and live in peace, but nothing in Burma has changed yet.
They must continue their work abroad, but they must also be patient. They should not set their expectations too high, for "the road ahead is still a long one." They must neither do anything extreme nor "put their feet up" and wait for democracy to happen. More specifically, she suggested that they improve their fluency in English, as fluency in English is essential in today's world, and they should also read more serious books.
She asked the ethnic groups to congratulate the SLORC for releasing her, but to make it clear that this is only the first step. They should adopt a position of "cautious optimism". She reiterated her appeal for all groups to put aside their differences for the time being and to work together for the restoration of democracy. They must all be united if democracy is to be achieved.
When asked where she found her energy and determination, she replied that her father was her main inspiration. Her father, she said, had worked tirelessly for the people and never for himself. She believes that as his daughter, she can and must live up to his example.
With so many people putting their trust in her, she feels that she cannot let them down, and that encourages her to work even harder. Others, she noted, have suffered much more than her, having had to spend years in jail and experience many forms of torture. She clearly feels a responsibility to these people and all others to continue to work fearlessly for true peace and democracy.
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has the intelligence, integrity, and political saviness necessary to lead and unite the country. Whether she will ever have a chance is another question. The fact that the SLORC has still made no official announcement concerning her release is cause for alarm. Most local residents remain wary, convinced that the SLORC is up to no good. The constant presence of plainclothed military intelligence staff photographing those who show up at Aung San Suu Kyi's gate has scared many supporters away.
Some fear a crackdown after all the journalists leave. No one believes that the SLORC will willingly let her assume a top leadership position. The inscrutability of SLORC policy remains a critical problem. Just as no one predicted her release, no one knows what the SLORC intends to do next. In the meantime, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and other opposition members will resume their political work, operating under the conviction that one day democracy will be theirs.
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