Today Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is celebrating yet another birthday from within the confines of house arrest.
The Conservatives have had a very strong record on Burma in recent years, much credit for which is due to our own Benedict Rogers. William Hague released this statement today:
"Aung San Suu Kyi has suffered over a decade of unjust imprisonment because of her extraordinary personal courage in standing up for the people of Burma. We utterly condemn her continued detention and that of the 2,000 other political prisoners in Burma.
As she marks her 63rd birthday under house arrest and isolated from her friends, family and the outside world, we call on the British Government today to redouble its efforts to raise Burma at the UN Security Council. Those countries which callously continue to oppose Security Council action on Burma, and to shield the junta, should be named and shamed."
My favourite quote of hers is:
"We do not accept the notion that democracy is a Western value. To the contrary; democracy simply means good government rooted in responsibility, transparency, and accountability."
Maybe, just maybe, she will live to be a part of democracy becoming a reality in Burma.
