Aung San Suu Kyi (1945-present) waged a historic battle against her own imprisonment in a country she called home. But now, she faces accusations of genocide and other crimes.
Aung San Suu Kyi (1945-present) waged a historic battle against her own imprisonment in a country she called home. But now, she faces accusations of genocide and other crimes.
Women’s contributions to peacekeeping efforts are often overlooked, but no more. This month on Womanica we're highlighting women who have spearheaded peacekeeping initiatives all over the world — from India to South Africa to the United States. We cover women like Doria Shafik who led Egypt’s female liberation movement, as well as Coretta Scott King who was a fierce advocate for equality for Black Americans and a leader in the Civil Rights Movement. Tune in to hear the stories of women who were integral to creating peace in their communities.
History classes can get a bad rap, and sometimes for good reason. When we were students, we couldn’t help wondering... where were all the ladies at? Why were so many incredible stories missing from the typical curriculum? Enter, Womanica. On this Wonder Media Network podcast we explore the lives of inspiring women in history you may not know about, but definitely should.
Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know–but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Educators, Villains, Indigenous Storytellers, Activists, and many more. Womanica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures.
Womanica was created by Liz Kaplan and Jenny Kaplan, executive produced by Jenny Kaplan, and produced by Liz Smith, Grace Lynch, Maddy Foley, Brittany Martinez, Edie Allard, Lindsey Kratochwill, Adesuwa Agbonile, Carmen Borca-Carrillo, Taylor Williamson, Ale Tejeda, Sara Schleede, and Alex Jhamb Burns. Special thanks to Shira Atkins.
Original theme music composed by Miles Moran.
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Hello! I’m Meltem Burak. I’m the host and producer of the podcast, Sesta. We aim to harness the power of arts and culture to foster conversation and build peace in Cyprus. I’ll be your guest host for this month of Womanica.
This month, we’re highlighting Peacebuilders: In times of conflict, these women have stepped in, bringing their creativity and insight to help facilitate peace across the globe.
Today, we’re talking about a woman who waged a historic battle against her own imprisonment in a country she called home. She fought against a military regime and inspired leaders a world away, until… she didn’t. Now she faces accusations of genocide and other crimes.
Let’s talk about Aung San Suu Kyi.
Aung San Suu Kyi’s birth was a prophetic one. She came into the world on June 19,1945, in Rangoon, Myanmar – then known as Burma. Her father, and namesake, Aung San was commander of the Burma Independence Army. He fought British colonial powers, and resisted Japanese invasion, and Allied intervention in World War II. Aung San was also in charge of the final negotiations that led to independence from the British in 1948.
But for all the premonition in her birth, Aung San Suu Kyi also learned about the dangers of peacebuilding at a young age. Her father was assassinated a month after her 2nd birthday. She had hardly any memory of him growing up.
As a young woman in the 1960s, Aung San Suu Kyi toured the globe – from the UK, to the U.S., and Japan, – studying politics and economics. At Oxford she met her husband, an academic named Michael Aris. They had two sons and settled in the UK.
Amid this busy life, Myanmar never left Aung San Suu Kyi’s mind. She often told Michael she’d have to return. In 1988, she finally did. Her mother had suffered a severe stroke, and Aung San Suu Kyi returned to take care of her.
This was a very different Myanmar than the one she left. A military regime had seized power in 1962. Twenty years later, tensions were at a boiling point under its repressive tactics. There were confrontations between police and crowds made up of students, office workers, and monks. Thousands of people died.
Aung San Suu Kyi felt she had found her calling. On August 26 1988, she gave her first public speech, saying, “I could not, as my father’s daughter, remain indifferent to all that was going on.”
Aung San Suu Kyi went on to lead a revolt against the military dictatorship, guided by the ideal of respect as a fundamental part of human dignity. She wrote that it wasn’t power that corrupts, but rather fear.
In fact, the dictatorship did fear her coalition’s increasing power. They established martial law that banned political meetings and threatened dissidents with prison sentences without trial. Aung San Suu Kyi paid the new rule no mind. She and her collaborators founded the National League for Democracy, or the NLD, which was dedicated to nonviolence and civil disobedience. Aung San Suu Kyi was one of the only women on the political scene, and by far the most powerful. She became known simply as “The Lady.”
Aung San Suu Kyi’s peaceful rebellion had its consequences. In 1989, she was placed under house arrest.
She spent those years in near-solitary confinement. She was unable to see her two sons, or Michael, who eventually died of cancer in 1999. She was invited to see her husband at the end of his lifeBut Aung San Suu Kyi refused to leave Myanmar, out of fear that officials wouldn’t allow her back into the country.
In the 1990 elections, the NLD won more than 80 percent of the legislative seats. The military government did not recognize the results. But around the world, leaders had heard of Aung San Suu Kyi’s story, and took up her fight.
In 1991, she won both the coveted Sakharov human rights prize from the European Parliament, and the Nobel Peace Prize while under house arrest. In 2008, U.S. President George W. Bush awarded her a Congressional Gold Medal.
The Myanmar government continued to prolong the house arrest year after year. Aung San Suu Kyi was finally released on November 13, 2010. That day, more than three thousand people gathered around her house. When she attempted to speak, she was drowned out by the crowds chanting her name and singing the national anthem.
Aung San Suu Kyi began her comeback. On April 1, 2012, she won a parliamentary seat in Myanmar’s first multiparty elections since 1990. In the following months, she delivered acceptance speeches for the prizes she’d won while under house arrest. And in 2015, Aung San Suu Kyi and the NLD won a historic parliamentary majority.However, Aung San Suu Kyi herself couldn’t become president. Myanmar’s laws prohibit anyone with foreign relatives becoming the nation’s leader, and both her sons are UK citizens.
Instead, the NLD created the role of “state counselor.” It essentially allowed Aung San Suu Kyi to work as the de facto head of state. The move escalated tensions between the NLD and the Tatmadaw, Myanmar’s army.
Although Aung San Suu Kyi’s vision of a unified Myanmar might’ve seemed like it was coming together, a disturbing truth was surfacing. In 2017, under NLD’s rule, hundreds of thousands of Rohingya, a Muslim ethnic minority, fled the country due to increased violence and deadly attacks from the Myanmar army. This mistreatment stemmed back to at least the 1970s. These most recent attacks killed an estimated 25,000 Rohingya people, and wounded tens of thousands more. It caused a refugee crisis displacing more than 700,000 people.
The UN called it by name: ethnic cleansing. Aung San Suu Kyi repeatedly denied the claim
Almost immediately, institutions that had held up Aung San Suu Kyi as an example rescinded the prizes they’d awarded her, including the US Holocaust Museum and Amnesty International. In 2019, Aung San Suu Kyi herself led a legal team in the International Court of Justice denying a lawsuit filed against Myanmar for committing genocidal acts.
Still, Aung San Suu Kyi’s party won the majority in the next election in 2020. But on February 1, 2021, the day the new parliament was set to convene, Myanmar’s military launched another coup. Aung San Suu Kyi and several other officials were arrested.
Today, at 77 years old, Aung San Suu Kyi faces many charges including election fraud, violating communications laws, and corruption. As of 2022, with further court proceedings in front of her, her total jail time amounts to 20 years.
For many, Aung San Suu Kyi remains a figure of liberation; for many others, she represents an incomplete picture of democracy, of a government unwilling and unequipped to truly represent all its people.
All month, we’re talking about peacebuilders. For more information, find us on Facebook and Instagram @womanicapodcast.
Special thanks to co-creators Jenny and Liz Kaplan, for having me as a guest host.
Talk to you tomorrow!