2010 On November 13, Suu Kyi was released from house arrest. International celebrations followed; US President Barack Obama called her “a hero of mine”
7/11/1995--Yangon, Myanmar (Rangoon, Burma)..Aung San Suu Kyi makes her first public appearance after 5 years of house arrest, at the front gate to her family compound at 54 University Avenue. As news spread of the Nobel Peace prize winner's release, nearly 10,000 ordinary citizens risked arrest to come greet her..
9.55am: Good morning, hundreds of supporters of Burma's long-detained pro-democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, have gathered outside her house for a second day, ahead of her expected release. Her latest term of house arrest officially ends today, and there has been a flurry of reported activity near her Rangoon home and a series of reports saying Burma's military rulers have sanctioned her freedom.
In his latest report for the Guardian, Jack Davies reports that Aung San Suu Kyi yesterday chose one last night of imprisonment so that she might walk truly free. He said the 65-year-old was told mid-afternoon Burma time yesterday that she was free to leave the two-storey lakeside villa which the junta had made her prison for most of this decade. However, attached to her release, the military sought to impose strict conditions, understood to be restrictions on where she could travel within Burma, and with whom she could meet.
He writes: "It was rumoured that Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma's best-known democracy advocate and a Nobel peace laureate, demanded an unconditional release and insisted on negotiating her unfettered freedom with military officials before she would set foot outside her door."
Today there has so far been no formal statement from Burma's ruling generals on Aung San Suu Kyi's release, but her lawyer Nyan Win told reporters earlier today: "Nothing has happened so far, but her house arrest expires today."
To remind you all: Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) won a landslide victory in elections in 1990 which were promptly ignored by the junta. She has subsequently been detained for 15 of the last 21 years.
The first elections since then took place on Sunday but were widely labelled a sham by outside observers. The NLD refused to take part and has now been ordered by the military to disband. The junta-dominated Union Solidarity and Development party looks set to take almost all the seats in both houses of parliament. Among the new MPs is Thein Sein, the current prime minister, who stepped down from the military to stand.
10.07am: There are unconfirmed reports on Twitter of further activity at Aung San Suu Kyi's house. Poster BURMA2010 writes: "Something brewing. NLD believes visitors to be allowed into the compound within the next hour. First the doctor, NLD CEC and then diplomats."
While we're awaiting further news, you can have a look through a gallery of the pro-democracy leader's life and another showing private photographs of her as a young bride-to-be, mother and housewife that belonged to her late husband, Michael Aris. There's also a timeline and a profile of her, which describes how she has become "an icon, a universal symbol of courage, endurance and peaceful resistance, a new Mandela."
10.43am: Three car officials have entered the compound where she is under house arrest, AP reports.
Reuters reports there are around 1,000 people gathered near the pro-democracy leader's home, many chanting "Release Aung San Suu Kyi" and "Long live Aung San Suu Kyi".
A government source told the news agency she would likely be released late in the day, but the comment could not be officially confirmed.
Reuters suggests that freeing Aung San Suu Kyi could be a bid by the ruling junta to seek some international legitimacy.
Such a move would be the first step towards a review of Western sanctions on the resource-rich country, the largest in mainland Southeast Asia and labelled by rights groups as one of the world's most corrupt and oppressive.
Freeing the charismatic 65-year-old leader could also divert some attention from an election widely dismissed as a sham to cement military power under a facade of democracy.
"The regime needs to create some breathing space urgently," said a retired Burmese academic, who asked not to be identified.
"They may do that by releasing her and might think it will help improve an image tarnished by electoral fraud."
10.53am: The AFP news agency says there are unconfirmed reports that Aung San Suu Kyi has been released. AP says government officials have read a release order to her. PA reports that barricades outside her house have been removed.
The BBC's Adam Mynott says the riot police have left and hundreds of people have surged forward outside the gates. He says there are reports that the pro-democracy leader will adress the crowd later today.
Here's a gallery of scenes around Aung San Suu Kyi's home today.
11.09am: Aung San Suu Kyi has finally been released. The BBC's Adam Mynott says she is standing on a box outside her house, waving at the crowd, trying to quieten them so she can speak. You can listen to his report here .
Amnesty International secretary general Salil Shetty said: "While Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's release is certainly welcome, it only marks the end of an unfair sentence that was illegally extended, and is by no means a concession on the part of the authorities.
"The fact remains that authorities should never have arrested her or the many other prisoners of conscience in Burma in the first place, locking them out of the political process."
He said it was now important the authorities ensured her security and "put an end to the ongoing injustice of political imprisonment in the country".
11.24am: The BBC reports that Aung San Suu Kyi has briefly adressed the crowd. She said:
"There is a time to be quiet and a time to talk. People must work in unison. Only then can we achieve our goal."
She has now gone back inside her house. It is unclear what her movements will be for the rest of the day, but she will speak at greater length tomorrow at midday local time outside the NLD's headquarters.
11.28am: David Cameron has said the pro-democracy leader's detention was "a travesty" and her release long overdue.
The prime minister added: "Aung San Suu Kyi is an inspiration for all of us who believe in freedom of speech, democracy and human rights."
11.36am: Zoya Phan, international co-ordinator at Burma Campaign UK, has described Aung San Suu Kyi's release as a public relations exercise by the military junta, which should not be mistaken for a step towards democratic reform.
She said: "I am thrilled to see our democracy leader free at last, but the release is not part of any political process, instead it is designed to get positive publicity for the dictatorship after the blatant rigging of elections on November 7.
"We must not forget the thousands of other political prisoners still suffering in Burma's jails."
There are more than 2,200 political prisoners in Burma held under vague laws frequently used to criminalise peaceful political dissent, according to human rights campaigners.
11.38am: Former prime minister Gordon Brown said: "There will be joy round the world at the release of Aung San Suu Kyi, the world's most renowned and courageous prisoner of conscience.
"Her release proves that no injustice can last forever, and while Burma's junta can continue its policy of repression it has never been able to wholly silence her voice.
"Despite enduring two decades of separation, her family has displayed great strength which has proved an inspiration to us all."
Labour's shadow foreign secretary Yvette Cooper said: "For Aung San Suu Kyi to be able to speak as a free woman for the first time in eight years is fantastic news.
"Aung San Suu Kyi is the symbol of the hope of Burma's people which has survived against the odds under a brutal and corrupt military regime.
"This is a significant step, but I hope only the first step. The world must keep up the campaign to support Aung San Suu Kyi and for the release of thousands of other political prisoners in a journey towards a free and democratic Burma."
11.53am: Aung San Suu Kyi has spoken on the phone to the younger of her two sons Kim, the BBC reports. The 33-year-old, who still lives in the UK and has not seen his mother in 10 years, said he was a very happy man and that she told him she hoped to see him soon. He is currently in Bangkok, Thailand, having failed to get a visa to Burma.
Reuters reports that she is preparing to hold her first meeting with senior members of the National League for Democracy (NLD) later today.
12.00pm: The foreign secretary, William Hague, has welcomed Aung San Suu Kyi's release and called on the military junta to allow her to move and work freely.
"She must now be allowed to assume a role of her choosing in the political life of her country without further hindrance or restriction.
"Last week's sham elections will not bring peace and prosperity to Burma. The regime now needs to release the other 2,100 political prisoners and begin a genuine dialogue with Aung San Suu Kyi and all opposition and ethnic groups.
"These remain the crucial first steps to solving Burma's many problems and addressing the pressing needs of its people."
12.20pm: US president Barack Obama has welcomed Aung San Suu Kyi's release and described her as a hero.
"She is a hero of mine and a source of inspiration for all who work to advance basic human rights in Burma and around the world," he said.
"Whether Aung San Suu Kyi is living in the prison of her house, or the prison of her country, does not change the fact that she, and the political opposition she represents, has been systematically silenced, incarcerated, and deprived of any opportunity to engage in political processes."
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Post time 4-6-2012 12:42 AM
