Where Is Daw Aung San Suu Khyi?

This is 54/56 University Avenue, in Rangoon (Yangon), the capital of Burma (Myanmar). From over this gate, during the early years of her nearly 17 years of house arrest, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi would address brave members of the National League for Democracy political party as well as curious tourists and foreign supporters. Back then, the gate used to look like this (thanks to Amnesty Intl. for photo):
During most of the second near-decade of The Lady's (as she's sometimes called by her country's legions of admirers) house arrest, she has remained behind these gates with only the companionship of her housekeeper (an unsung hero in her own right) and receiving monthly check-ups by a state-approved physician.

No wonder the gates are rusting away and foliage seems rapidly to be flourishing into jungle. Two middle-aged women are living there in isolation, trying to keep their wits about them as day after day passes with no end or change in sight. Who cares if weeds overtake the un-used garage? Basic survival and sanity retention, not keeping up appearances a la Hyacinth Bucket, must be the main focus for these two remarkably stalwart people.

Rumour has it that the junta forbid Suu Kyi this summer from tending the garden in any way, as if she or her maid had much energy at this point to hack at weeds anyway. Why would the junta care about the garden? Well, they have a track record with niggling over seemingly innocuous issues, for one thing, but also snakes and mosquitoes simply adore lurking in dense undergrowth. The loonytunes bastards in charge might think, what the heck? If decades of incarceration and isolation can't smoke out The Lady, perhaps a deadly viper or dengue fever could do the trick.

But at this point, is she even there?

The compound's derelict state alone doesn't prompt my doubt. But two other reference points make me fear for her whereabouts -- as if languishing in one's home for years on end, with nil contact with one's family or compatriots, is all that stellar either.

First point is that a Myanmar friend in Bagan believes, based on what he saw at 54 University Avenue while visiting Yangon five months ago, that she has been moved. He drove by in a taxi and noticed no security in front of the residence. Nor did the taxi driver hesitate to slow down so that our friend could get a good look at the compound. When he reported this to his Yangon relatives, they said that some people suspect the Tatmadaw have slacked off on guarding The Lady's house because she's no longer there.

Second point is our own experience when we drove by the domicile-cum-prison. Our taxi driver, who picked us up at Yangon's airport to take us into town during our layover on the way home, didn't flinch upon our request to cruise University Avenue. As we approached 54/56, we drove under a permanently raised traffic barrier manned by a single bored soldier (no gun in sight, although probably lurking under his desk) who gave us not a second glance.

Himself had a somewhat different experience six years ago. His attempt to stroll up University Avenue met with gruff resistance from automatic weapon-wielding soldiers. No way, no how was this foreigner going to get anywhere within 200m of Suu Kyi's gate...because she was there, and preventing contact between her and the outside world is the m.o. of her captors. So how else to explain the checkpoint's present lassitude other than...they've moved her somewhere else and are fiercely guarding that place instead? I never thought I'd hope that The Lady is in her house, because she should be free to go anywhere, but her own (decaying, decrepit) home is better than -- God forbid -- Insein.

Searching the Internet, however, has yielded no references to the Tatmadaw moving her. I hope my suspicions and those of our friend's family are wrong. If Suu Kyi is indeed still passing her days at home, perhaps the Tatmadaw merely relaxed the checkpoint after attempted visits waned due to so many years of hardcore prevention. Or maybe they decreased their visible presence after installing snipers in nearby trees.

Sounds paranoid? We're talking about the Burmese junta. They've thrown people in jail for telling jokes. They routinely enlist children to toil -- unpaid, as insult to grievous injury -- on army projects. So snipers in trees? Maybe not as weird as it sounds.

Tomorrow: Reflections on and photos of the lovely people we spent time with during our trip. The ordinary, regular, non-Tatmadaw people of Burma who are just like the rest of us, trying to do the best they can for their children and their community, scratching out an existence in an economy under perpetual slump, savouring life's simple pleasures and surely appreciating them more than do many luckier folks. (Including moi. What a reality check.)

Comments

[Sarah]

Thought you may be interested in reading about Dictator chic weddings.

Burma leader's lavish lifestyle aired

House arrest is beyond crap but luckily Aung San Suu Khyi probably didn't have to suffer the boredom of Burma's "Royal Wedding".

[Sarah]

Hey! I managed to post without the links. Sorry

Thought you may be interested in reading about Dictator chic weddings.

Burma leader's lavish lifestyle aired
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6109356.stm

House arrest is beyond crap but luckily Aung San Suu Khyi probably didn't have to suffer the boredom of Burma's "Royal Wedding".

http://youtube.com/watch?v=3uDa6ar-z5I