US President Barack Obama on Tuesday called on Myanmar’s junta to “immediately and unconditionally” free democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, saying she was the victim of a spurious show trial.
Obama escalated US pressure on Myanmar’s ruling generals after the Nobel laureate took the stand for the first time in her trial at Yangon’s notorious Insein jail and argued she had not violated the terms of her house arrest.
“I call on the Burmese government to release National League for Democracy Secretary General and Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi from detention immediately and unconditionally,” Obama said in a written statement.
“I strongly condemn her house arrest and detention, which have also been condemned around the world. Aung San Suu Kyi’s continued detention, isolation, and show trial based on spurious charges cast serious doubt on the Burmese regime’s willingness to be a responsible member of the international community,” Obama said.
Obama lauded Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of the National League for Democracy for her “profound patriotism, sacrifice, and the vision of a democratic and prosperous Burma” despite being confined to years of house arrest.
Obama’s statement contained the merest hint that Myanmar’s future prospects of engagement with western nations could depend on how it deals with the case, amid fears Aung San Suu Kyi could be jailed for up to five years.
“It is time for the Burmese government to drop all charges against Aung San Suu Kyi and unconditionally release her and her fellow political prisoners,” Obama said. “Such an action would be an affirmative and significant step on Burma’s part to begin to restore its standing in the eyes of the United States and the world community and to move toward a better future for its people.”
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