INTERVIEW WITH DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI

[lurie@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Rangoon - July 1995
                                    
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                     Interview with Aung San Suu Kyi
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Tapescript

ASSK: So, I'm the one  who should ask you, what is it that you
wish to know, what do you feel you have missed out on because you
were not here for the previous press conference?

Q: I think we'd like an idea of what your political game plan is,
or at least an inkling. 

ASSK: Do you think I'm going to reveal that now?

Q No. But could you give us any idea of what your leverage is
with the SLORC refusing to talk to you?

ASSK: My goodness, you don't expect me to put all my cards on
the table just after two weeks? .......Let me put it this way, we
have made it quite clear that what we want is dialogue, and
dialogue with a view to achieving national reconciliation and we
will work towards dialogue at a pace which is In keeping with the
political climate as it is and everything that I do (.....) so if
I think it is the right time, I will ask for permission to speak  
about our policy decisions and if they.....????? Otherwise I'm
just here because I was told that individual correspondents
wanted to speak to me, and ......but If I did that I kept saying
I'd never progress with my work and I'd never have anything
interesting to give you. It would be very boring for you.

Q: How do you feel after your release?                            

ASSK: I feel rather tired, but on the whole I think I'm happier
with the situation. I'm very pleased with the situation of the
NLD and in some ways I think our experience of the last six years
has strengthened our people and really made them  understand what
it was all about and it's sorted out the sheep from the goats as
it were and we are better and stronger and slimmer for it.

Q: What do you mean, sheep from the goats?

ASSK: Well, some who could not take the pressure, who really
were perhaps not ready to sacrifice too much for the cause, those
people have drifted away and the ones who are left are strong and
dedicated and this makes us a better, tighter-knit, more 
effective organization.

Q: Do you think you'll be able to re-organise the NLD? Re-
energise the NLD? There are legal and security obstacles in your
way, surely?

ASSK: Well, obviously we'll have to deal with the legal and
security obstacles one by one but already I've started to re-
organise, re-energise the NLD, that is what I've been doing for
the last two weeks.

Q:
ASSK: ???

Q: If you were to become some sort of figurehead for the country,
what about the legal obstacles, the constitution obstacles that
stand in your way? Do you see that as something difficult?

ASSK: We have felt that nothing should be beyond negotiation,
everything should be open to negotiation and what we want to try
to do is to bring about a political system that is in keeping
with the will of the people. That was our original aim and this
is the aim to which we adhere. And anybody who really wished for
the good of the country must accept that all problems should be
open to negotiation.

Q: Do you think that the economic growth that we've seen over the
past six years while you were unfortunately detained here, do you
think that has in any sense dampened down the demand for
political change, the demand for democracy?

ASSK: The overt demand for democracy has quietened down, but this
has nothing to do with what they feel inside, it's because of
the, restriction placed on such demands but as I see it, the
economic growth has not really reached the whole country, it has
reached only a privileged few, and I do not think that that has
in any way changed the feeling of the people.

Q: France, alongside me French oil company Total, is one of
the major investors in Burma. How can its presence benefit you
country?

ASSK: Well, that's what I would like to know. I would like to
know how the presence of Total and all the other multinational
investment affects the country, and by me country I mean the
people who need it most. Foreign investment, foreign companies,
what are they doing for the common people? Have they really
benefited the common people in any way, this is something which
has yet to be proved. Does It just mean more money and more
wealth for those who already have wealth and money, does it mean
more privileges for the elite, or does ff mean real change in the
situation of the common people, and I think we need more proof on
this before we decide. 

Q: Does this relate to what has been called 'constructive
engagement' of ASEAN countries?

ASSK: Yes, I've already spoken quite a number of times on
constructive engagement. Of course what we would like ASEAN
countries to see is how constructive engagement Is affecting the
ordinary people of Burma, I've said quite frankly that I consider
the people far more important than the government.

Q: People who have supported constructive engagement would say
that they have felt it made the regime feel more comfortable, by
talking to the regime and bringing the SLORC foreign Minister to
ASEAN meetings and so on. What would you say to that sort of
justification of the constructive engagement policy?

ASSK: Well, I would not refute it downright, I'm sure everybody
has tried to ? say because in this day and age you can not stop
up the borders and I'm sure international opinion whether it
comes from ASEAN or whether it comes from of other parts of the
world, does count in this country. 

Q: Former French President Mitterand wrote the Foreward of
your book, Freedom from Fear, but his critical dialogue has been
rather co-operative with the SLORC. How do you judge this?

ASSK: Well, it's a little like the question that was asked to me
earlier with regard to constructive engagement. I think all
international opinion counts. In this day and age, any government
cannot be oblivious to international opinion, and international
action will certainly have some sort of effect. Exactly what sort
of effect. Exactly what sort of effect it is  difficult to say,
because we're so close to events. I think it is only after about
ten or fifteen years when we are further away from events and we
know more about what went on in side the inner circle of the
administration that we'll be able to decide definitely how much
the effects of different, policies, the different groupings of
countries, I have had on development in Burma. 

Q: Obviously your focus now Is on negotiations with the SLORC,
coming to some sort of working arrangement with the SLORC, but
beyond that, you still have to deal with the minorities, the
ethnic minorities, who are arguably more alienated, more
estranged, from the military than the ethnic Burmese people
themselves. Have you got any ideas of how you might deal with
that problem when the time comes?

ASSK: We have always said that the key to the problem with the
ethnic minorities and to build up confidence. It is because they
have no confidence in the central Burmese government that we have
all these problems, so we've got to gain their trust. Its very
much up to us who constitute the largest grouping to try to gain
the confidence of the smaller ethnic groups, and for that, we all
have to try. The government alone  cannot do it, all the Burmese
people must try to gain the  confidence of the ethnic minorities
of Burma, and in the end, if they feel the can trust us, I think
we can build up a strong union. There is nothing politically or
economically standing as obstacle in the way of a proper strong
and lasting union, it's just more emotional differences, so I
feel if we can win their trust and keep  our word by them, if we
show them we value them and we understand them, we should be able
to achieve peace and unity in the future.

Q: In 1992, Levi Strauss pulled out and have tied their economic
investment here to progress on human rights. Would you like to
see other American companies also make the same decisions, to tie
their economic investment to human rights issues?

ASSK: This is rather similar to the question that was just asked,
and I feel that during this wait-and-see period, where we want to
see in which way the authorities wish to move and where we want
to give them every opportunity to be able to come to the
negotiation table with a clear conscience, and with the best will
possible, I think this is something we must wait and see. I have
said that this is not the time to rush in with investment, please
wait and see, that I said from the very first week, please wait
and see before rushing in with! new investment, let us see which
way we go and when we know in which direction we are heading,
then I think I must consult my colleagues and then make the kind
of positive statement that we feel is appropriate in that
situation.

Q: As to the NLD s statement when it comes out, are we talking
days, weeks, months?

ASSK: Ah, from the very first day I said I refuse to speculate,
partly because Burmese people believe far too much in
fortune-tellers and I don't want to encourage that kind of
belief, whatever we want to get, I don t want to put a time limit
on it.

Q: I heard that you met the Japanese Ambassador two times, what
do you think of Japanese government policy over the years; what
do you think of the Japanese ODA?

ASSK: Well, I think that is something you should ask the Japanese
Ambassador about. I usually do not like to talk about my private
conversations with my hosts. Since he was my host, please go and
ask him.

Q: Have you a clear vision of what Burmese democracy should
be.  

ASSK: Oh yes, it's basically democracy for the people of
Burma  it's very simple: they want to be valued, they want to
feel that their lives, their opinions, their aspirations, are
valued by the government, X basically that's what it amounts to
and we have to try to build up a political system which will
ensure mat kind of valuation of the people.

Q: Will you, will the NLD, be taking any part in the
Constitutional Convention?

ASSK: As far as I know, the NLD is taking part in the
Constitutional Convention.

Q: Sorry, I meant that section of the NLD which is currently not
taking part in the Constitutional Convention, because the people
who are taking part seem to be, er, what are they, sheep or
goats, I can t remember?

ASSK: No, we aren't very united ? and ? who have a pan in the
Constitutional Convention, and we understand exactly why they had
to do what they did during the last six years.

Q: So do you see the Constitutional Convention as a useful forum
for debate?

ASSK: Well, I think that this Is another of the issues which
should be open to negotiation to make it a truly useful forum for
debate.

Q: What would make it a truly useful forum for debate? ASSK: If
the voice of the people can be heard. J: And how would that
happen? 

ASSK: We have to work out the details one by one.

Q: What would you like your sympathisers in Bangkok to do?     

ASSK: ?I would like them to help us achieve them. 

Q: For six years you did not give up your goal. Who or what
gave you such strength and courage?

ASSK: Well, partly the thought of my father, the thought of the
people and the thought of my colleagues who were suffering far
more serious than I was, because I was only under house arrest,
and that's a far more comfortable situation than jail. If I ever
thought I was having a hard time, I always knew that others were
having a far harder time, and that inspected me and kept me
strong.

Q: ....the Thai people .. their role in helping disorder the
ethnic minorities around the Thai border

ASSK: This question I think another charge asked me about a week
back, and I made the point then that because Thailand and Burma
are neighbours, it is particularly Important that there should be
good relations between us, and to have good relations between
countries, the people of the countries have to have good
relations, so I would like the government of Thailand to look at
this, to shape their policies in such a way that there can be
good relations between the people of Thailand and the people of
Burma as a whole. I know that it is not easy for the Thai
government, but with good will and with a genuine desire to help
build our ?? I think we can achieve this. You should always, in
my opinion - this maybe perhaps a rather idealistic way of
looking at things - but I think you should always give more
attention and compassion to the weakest people.

Q: Nobel laureate and Buddhist leader the Dalai Lama has been
trying to effect political change through non-violent means, but
it has been going very slowly, and I feel in my heart that you
are very similar in your being as a Buddhist and your motivation
to effect change in a way that's good for everyone, I don't know,
I wondered if you'd thought about you know what you can learn
from his experience, you know, do you think will go quicker for
you, I know politically it's a different situation but...

ASSK: Well, that's exactly it, politically the situation is very,
very different, because the movement there is complicated by the
fact that the difference is between two racial groups, but we in
Burma, the first thing we have to do is to achieve understanding
between the authorities and the democratic forces, and in general
we belong to the same ethnic group - of course there are the
ethnic groups, but they're not trying to make Burmese move out -
so the situation which may have some kind of indirect relevance
to your own situation, I don't think they are similar enough to
make any serious analogy.

Q: How much does your spiritual belief affect your political
decisions?

ASSK: That is difficult to gauge because one's spiritual beliefs
are so much a part of one that you can not say that it is because
of this particular belief that I came to this particular solution
or I decided to do something in this particular way, but on the
whole I've always tried to use my spiritual strength to promote
the cause of which I'm working.

Q: Sorry to keep banging on about this, but have you any sign
whatsoever that the Slorc is prepared to talk to you? Have you
had any indication?

ASSK: Whether I have or not, I would have to wait until I think
the time is right.

Q: Will you ask the international community to take tougher
sanctions against the Slorc if the political situation in Burma
doesn't improve?

ASSk: Well, it's premature to talk about such things at a time
when we are working for reconciliation, let us not make
provocative statements which will put obstacles in the way of
reconciliation, when the time comes and we must think of such
things then we  will think about it.

Q: OK. Your release has taken the world by surprise. How do
you explain it?

ASSK: I'm not sure. I would like believe that it is because the
authorities themselves wish for reconciliation. There are
theories about this, and nobody can prove that their theory is
right, so let us stick to the most the most positive theory and
hope that it's the correct one.

Q: What changes did your family find in you and what
changes did you find in your nearest and dearest?

ASSK: Well, first With my family, I could see my sons growing and
changing all the time because they were of that age. My youngest
son was twelve when I was put under house arrest. He's eighteen
now and during that period  you can change a great deal. Perhaps
my older son changed less because he was between the ages of
sixteen and twenty-two and the change is less perceptible. In me,
I don't know, I've never asked them if  have changed.

Q: When will the 'meeting people' sessions stop - they can't go
on for ever?

ASSK: Well, I find this very difficult because, you know, I find
it very difficult not to respond to their friendship and to their
love and affection but it is difficult, I think sometimes it
should stop because it can be a little bit disruptive of work and
then I start worrying about them being there, if I'm doing
something and it starts to rain and I think  they are outside, I
feel 1 should rush out and talk to them so they can yo home, and
that does disrupt work, and also if I have to go out  work, also
if I have to go out, I feel worried if I'm out and I'm not back
in time and they have been waiting and it's either too hot or too
wet or, or, ..., so I do not want to say to them 'Don't come'
they should be allowed to come. And secondly, I am happy to see
them. I like to keep up, to maintain this contact, but for
practical reasons, because it's inconvenient for all of them and
because I tend to get worried about their situation, their
waiting and sitting in the sun, I wish that we somehow could
arrange it so that they didn't come, that we somehow could
arrange it so that they didn't come, that they could come in a
way more convenient for them and for me.

Q: Did  you get any message from them?

ASSK: Well, we're always talking to each other, it's not one
message as such, but I think on the whole the message is that
they want me to know they are behind me and they trust me and
whey want me to trust them and of course this will happen because
this is our aim to build up a country where we have politics
based on trust and confidence rather then on coercion and power.

Q: Do you expect the government to intervene to stop them coming? 

ASSK: Well, I do not think there is really any good reason for
them to intervene, because they're very quiet, they do not
disrupt the traffic-the first few days, yes they did block the
road, but I explained to them I didn't want to have them block
the road, and they were very co-operative about it, so I do not
see any reason why anybody should try to trouble them-any good
reason that is.

Q: Do you feel that the people-I know you perhaps haven't had
time to meet many of them yet apart from your conversations over
the gate-but do you feel that the people have changed, that their
aspirations have changed or matured or modified over the six
years since 88?

ASSK: Well, their aspirations have not changed, but I think they
have matured, and actually I am really very happy about the
situation. I think in many ways they are stronger-quieter, but
stronger. Perhaps because they are stronger inside, they can
afford to be quieter now.

Q: Is the Freedom from fear" philosophy over? Are you entering a
new stage?

ASSK: No, no I think we shall always have to struggle to free
ourselves from fear as long as we live in this world. I do not
think that struggle will ever come to an end.

Q: To clarify one point, the NLD, is it still the same NLD you
that helped create in 88-897 

ASSK: It's not the same, because a lot of them have been expelled
including myself.

Q: True, so are you them going to, are the people going to hold
new elections is it going to be reformed?

ASSK: We're not doing anything of any reform at the moment. What
we are trying to do now is to reunite the forces of those who,
for various reason, have been made to leave the NLD and those who
have been left inside, so this is a time for "reconciliation" I
think is the newest phase.