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NEWS - Suu Kyi Asks Myanmar Women t
- Subject: NEWS - Suu Kyi Asks Myanmar Women t
- From: Rangoonp@xxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 21 Jun 1999 13:43:00
Subject: NEWS - Suu Kyi Asks Myanmar Women to Fight for Democracy on
Women's Day
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Suu Kyi Asks Myanmar Women to Fight for Democracy on Women's Day
AP
20-JUN-99
BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) -- Embattled opposition leader
Aung San Suu Kyi encouraged Myanmar women to fight for
democracy in a statement released Saturday on Women of
Burma Day, an unofficial holiday that coincides with the
activist's birthday.
"There is a great need for our women of Burma to use
their
capabilities to bring democracy and human rights to our
country," Suu Kyi said in her statement, which was
received
in Bangkok.
Although not recognized as a national holiday, Women of
Burma Day was created by Suu Kyi's supporters as a way to
celebrate the struggles and achievements of the country's
women.
Myanmar, which has been ruled by the military since 1962,
is
also known as Burma. Suu Kyi, the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize
winner, spent six years under house arrest from 1989-95
for
her role in trying to restore democracy to the Southeast
Asian nation.
Suu Kyi delivered her statement Friday to members of her
political party, the National League for Democracy, at
its
headquarters in Myanmar's capital, Yangon.
"It is no longer possible even for housewives to keep out
of
politics, because politics has invaded the traditional
domain
of housewives," Suu Kyi said. "The root cause of upward
spiraling commodity prices, greatly increased charges for
electricity and rising costs of education and health care
is a
political one."
Suu Kyi and many economists have blamed the military
government for economic mismanagement that has plunged
the resource-rich country into poverty. Power cuts are a
daily
occurrence.
The government spends nearly half its budget on defense,
while appropriations for health care and education have
steadily dwindled during the past decade.
On Saturday, which was her 54th birthday, Suu Kyi spent
the day giving food to Buddhist monks, as she customarily
does on the 19th of each month to honor her late father
and
Myanmar's independence leader, Aung San. He was
assassinated by political rivals on July 19, 1947, along
with
six members of his Cabinet.
In Bangkok, more than 20 women from Myanmar protested
against military rule in front of the Myanmar Embassy.
Dressed in traditional sarongs, they chanted
anti-military
slogans.
In her statement, Suu Kyi also addressed women who have
fled the country to avoid campaigns by the army. More
than
100,000 refugees from Myanmar, mostly ethnic minorities,
have been living in camps in Thailand for several years.
"We are working hard so that you may be able to come back
soon to a Burma that will be a refuge for all our ethnic
nationalities," she said. "Please do not lose heart."