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| Southeast Asia |
| Red Cross Asks to See Myanmar’s Suu Kyi |
| 2003-06-05 |
| BANGKOK (AP) - The International Red Cross asked to see pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and several of her colleagues Wednesday amid reports they may have been "She's fine. Really. We're going to have lunch with her today. She's fine — looking good and did you see that DRESS! Wow. Totally. She's fine. We'll say hello for you. ... Um, hi, how're you? May we help you?" The Nobel Peace Prize winner and 19 others were taken into ``protective custody'' after a clash between her followers and government supporters in northern Myanmar on Friday, and her party's offices around the country were closed. Also Wednesday, families of university students were told that schools shut down Sunday would reopen immediately. University classes were scheduled to begin Monday for the new academic year, and the closures raised fears of a widening crackdown against government opponents. Magne Barth, deputy regional chief of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Bangkok, said the group made a request Wednesday ``at the highest levels'' to see Suu Kyi and her colleagues. ``When we have a new development Generals have been wanting to kill her for years. Wonder what got them to move now? They allege that 70 or more people may have been killed in the incident — which they described as a deliberate ambush by government-backed forces — and a related protest the next day. What a clumsy ploy. Yep, just another spontaneous demonstration against a gentle human rights activist. Happens all the time, and look who always gets hurt. Tight controls on the press and the relatively remote location of the reported clash made it impossible to confirm what happened. It has been impossible to make telephone calls to the area since soon after the clash. ``We've heard it from many sources, that she and (NLD vice chairman) Tin Oo are severely injured,'' Soe Aung of the National Council of the Union of Burma, a coalition of exiled political and ethnic minority groups opposed to the junta, said Wednesday in Bangkok. In closed-door briefings Tuesday to foreign diplomats in the Myanmar capital Yangon, Deputy Foreign Minister Khin Maung Win said Suu Kyi was being held in a ``secure place'' and was uninjured. Soe Aung said he spoke to eyewitnesses of Friday's confrontation. ``If she (Suu Kyi) is fine, why can't someone be allowed to meet with her?'' he asked. "Hi, I'm Steve from the American Embassy. Since she's alive and unhurt, I'd like to have lunch with her. Today." "You can't do lunch. It's 7 am. Go away." "It's lunchtime somewhere. I'm hungry. Produce her now, please." A source close to Tin Oo's family said Wednesday night his family received a letter in his handwriting asking for some prescription medicine but were not told any details of his condition. "It's nothing serious, and by the way, does she happen to have any seizure pills?" Diplomats attending Tuesday's government briefings were skeptical of the government account. International figures, including President Bush and U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, have demanded Suu Kyi's release. Even some of Myanmar's fellow members in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, normally loath to interfere in each other's affairs, have expressed concern. Leading U.S. lawmakers called Wednesday for new sanctions against Myanmar, including a ban on exports from the Asian nation. Bills introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate also would freeze the assets of Myanmar's junta and require the United States to oppose loans to the country from international financial institutions. Myanmar's government is under serious pressure to produce Suu Kyi by Friday, when special U.N. envoy, Razali Ismail, is due to visit. Razali said Thursday in Kuala Lumpur he would go ahead with the visit despite deep concerns about the detention, and added he would convey a firm message to the junta that Suu Kyi should be freed immediately. Razali said he expects to meet Gen. Than Shwe, the junta's top general to push for the release. Allright! A firm message from the UN. By Gawd that'll show 'em. The envoy said earlier he hoped to see the dissident. ``It would be difficult to fulfill my mandate if I don't see Suu Kyi,'' he said. Myanmar's military government has refused to guarantee access to her. I'm thinking the worst here. |
| Posted by:Steve White |