|
Article Excerpt
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, popularly known in Myanmar as "the lady" or "Daw Suu", is considered the leader of the Myanmar pro-democracy movement by locals and foreigners alike. An Iraqi taxi driver I met in Gothenburg, Sweden, did not know where Myanmar was but had heard of Aung San Suu Kyi. Likewise, a Nigerian taxi driver in Chicago was not aware of the fact that Burma and Myanmar were the same country, but he knew who Aung San Suu Kyi was. Since she won the Noble Peace Prize in 1991, Aung San Suu Kyi (hereafter referred to as Suu Kyi) has been dubbed by some as the "goddess of democracy". Quite often, the biographies of leading political figures are written by their loyalists, enemies, or by neutral authors or scholars. In the case of Suu Kyi, however, one finds that most of the writings about her are written by her sympathizers and her enemy (the Myanmar junta). Her sympathizers typically describe how Suu Kyi has sacrificed her life in the struggle against the junta, and how the junta relentlessly represses the lady and other pro-democracy activists. For Suu Kyi's sympathizers, she is the answer to all Myanmar's socio-political problems. Some would even go so far as to say that Myanmar's problems will fester until she assumes the leadership of the country. However, from the point of view of the ruling junta, Suu Kyi has been the source of all political problems in the country. Since coming to power, the junta has published several hundred articles and more than five books detailing why Suu Kyi is unfit to lead the country. In this age of democracy and human rights, it is not surprising that many would only have a sympathetic view of the lady and a negative view of the regime that represses its own citizens to keep itself in power.
The authors of the two books under review in this article apparently set out to present a balanced view of the role of Suu Kyi in Myanmar politics. Barbara Victor, the author of The Lady: Aung San Suu Kyi, Nobel Laureate and Burma's Prisoner was in fact allowed to do research in the country on the condition that she write a balanced account concerning political developments in Myanmar. Needless to say, the country's military leaders wanted her to produce a book that described their system of governance in favourable terms. Victor explains how the military leaders in Myanmar view the political problems in their country, and how Suu Kyi and others view the political deadlock. While presenting the information she gathered in Yangon and elsewhere, Victor indicates that it was impossible for her to write favourably about the regime, other than mentioning that she thought some military officers she interviewed were highly intelligent. Justin Wintle, the author of Perfect Hostage: A Life of Aung San Suu Kyi, did not get a chance to see either Suu Kyi or any serving military officers. Relying on interviews with a number of political activists and the documents and press releases of pro-democracy organizations and foreign government agencies, he too attempts to reconstruct the story of Suu Kyi, especially how she came to be involved in the pro-democracy movement and how she has had to deal with the repressive military government which endeavours to exclude her from the political process at any cost.
In many ways, the two books under review in this article are very similar. The main thrust of the two books is the dispute between a loving wife and mother-turned pro-democracy leader and a repressive military regime. Both authors illustrate that while Suu Kyi is stronger than the junta both in terms of spirit and legitimacy, the military leaders are politically more adept and possess a monopoly on force. The two books also suggest that both the junta and pro-democracy groups are not in a position to do away with each other. The junta, with its control over coercive mechanisms, can control the government but lacks legitimacy. Suu Kyi and pro-democracy groups enjoy more international and domestic legitimacy, but cannot find a way to remove the regime or to make it work with the opposition. Meanwhile, ordinary citizens have to endure the enormous sufferings caused by the political deadlock in the country. Although the two books were published eight years apart, they both conclude by presenting a gloomy outlook for the political future of Myanmar, for neither author can imagine how an idealistic opposition and a regime bent on its survival at any cost can find a way to work together.
The purpose of this review essay is to provide some context absent from these two books, and identify missing links in some of the issues discussed. In so doing, special attention will be given to the problems that Suu Kyi has had to deal with as an opposition leader, the interaction between Suu Kyi and the regime, and to understanding the myths that have influenced this interaction. In so doing, I will rely on some of my earlier works and my own research findings. Most of my interviewees did not want to be cited by name. Some also asked me not to mention their job titles or the exact interview dates in my work. I have, of course, respected these wishes, and consequently, this article frequently provides the vague citation "interviews". By this I mean information acquired from interviews with five or more people.
The Lady as Opposition Leader
Although Suu Kyi was the daughter of the foremost Myanmar national hero, she spent most of her adult life outside the country. However, Suu Kyi herself, and people close to her, note that regardless of her marriage to a British citizen, the late Michael Aris, and the long time she stayed away from her native land, she was prepared to devote her life to the country if called on to do so.
The two books under review portray Suu Kyi as a patriot who harbours a dream of following in her father's footsteps and sacrificing her life for the country. In so doing, the two books discuss how Suu Kyi became a very dedicated leader of the Four-Eights Democracy Movement (1) which was initiated by pro-democracy students in an attempt to bring down the military-dominated socialist government that ruled the country between 1962 and 1988. The two books also shed light on how she has resisted the pressure placed on her by the junta that succeeded the socialist government in September 1988. Highlighting her courage to confront powerful military leaders, the two authors describe Suu Kyi as one of the most courageous pro-democracy activists in the world. To further elucidate their argument, both authors also discuss at some length how people revere Suu Kyi. In illustrating Suu Kyi's determination...
|
