The World Welcomes the Freedom of Aung San Suu Kyi - 2002-05-06

The world welcomed the freedom of Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the opposition in Myanmar, who had been under house arrest. A spokesperson for the Indonesian Foreign Ministry expressed that their government was pleased that the military regime of Myanmar had found a way to free the leader of the country's democrats. Ramos-Horta, the acting Foreign Minister of East Timor, praised the release of Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi in a statement. Mahathir Mohamad, the Prime Minister of Malaysia, called the freedom of the leader of Myanmar's democrats a victory of common sense, while Alexander Downer, the Australian Foreign Minister, in agreement with Western countries, urged the Myanmar military to release the remaining political prisoners. The newly freed leader of Myanmar's democrats stated that progress had been made in her negotiations with the military government regarding the future of Myanmar. Ms. Aung, just hours after her long house arrest in Rangoon, said that these negotiations, which began a year ago, have now moved beyond the stage of building trust and will soon begin to resolve political issues. The leader of the National League for Democracy confirmed that there were no restrictions on her movements and called her freedom a new dawn for the country. In Washington, Colin Powell, the U.S. Secretary of State, expressed great happiness about this matter to reporters, stating that he hopes Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, will be allowed to participate again in Myanmar's political life. At the United Nations headquarters in New York, Kofi Annan, the UN Secretary-General, issued a statement declaring that the release of Aung San Suu Kyi is a major transformation that gives new momentum to the reconciliation process in Myanmar. Mr. Annan also referred to the role of Razali Ismail, the UN special envoy, in negotiating Ms. Suu Kyi's release. Japan, the largest donor to Myanmar, praised the military government's action in releasing Aung San Suu Kyi and promised to provide more financial assistance to the country as it moves towards restoring democracy. Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi, who was freed after 19 months of house arrest, vowed to restore democracy to her homeland, which is under military rule. Today, she was greeted by thousands of her supporters, who expressed their feelings and waved as she traveled by car to the headquarters of her party, the National League for Democracy. Ms. Suu Kyi, who is 56 years old and a Nobel Peace Prize winner, stated that her freedom heralds a new era in Myanmar. She said the military has placed no conditions on her freedom of movement. The government of Myanmar also announced that a new chapter has been turned in the history of Myanmar.