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Aung San Suu Kyi appreciates the support of the Czech Republic
By People in Need • December 3, 2010The leading Burmese dissident Aung San Suu Kyi has thanked for the long-term support of the Czech Republic in the fight for democracy in Burma. She conveyed this message when receiving a letter by former Czech president Václav Havel in which he was congratulating her to her release from house arrest. The letter was delivered by two Czech journalists, Pavel Vondra from the Czech Television and Naďa Straková from weekly Respekt, and who made a short interview with her.
“Together with your other friends I rejoice that you are once more free and admire the steadfastness with which you have endured your years of house arrest. Once again it demonstrates to us all that it makes sense to draw systematic attention to the violation of human rights in the world, and that sooner or later it can achieve good results even in the face of harsh dictatorial regimes.” Václav Havel writes in his letter. You can find the whole letter attached.
“I would so much like to go to Prague to meet the Czech people who have been so good to us, whom I see as our very staunch friends. There is a very, very special relationship between the Czechs and the Burmese who have been working for democracy for so long,” Suu Kyi mentioned during the meeting with Czech journalists. However she is not planning any trips abroad because it is not clear if the Burmese authorities would let her back into the country. She is planning to reply in writing to the letter by Václav Havel.
Pavel Vondra and Naďa Straková met with Aung San Suu Kyi in her house in Rangoon, where she has spent over 15 years under house arrest. Her son Kim Aris also took part in the meeting; he was granted a Visa to go to Burma to see his mother after 10 years.
The exclusive interview by the two journalists will be broadcasted by the Czech Television on Sunday December 5, 2010 at 21:35 in the programme 168hours. The interview will also be published in the weekly Respekt on the following Monday.
The Czech Republic has been supporting the Burmese democratic movement since the beginning of the 1990s. Then-president Václav Havel nominated Suu Kyi for a Nobel Peace Prize in 1991. The Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs is supporting the democratization in Burma at international fora and finances humanitarian and human rights projects in Burma. People in Need organization supports the families of political prisoners, independent journalists and dissidents and also small non-governmental organizations which carry our social or education projects.
More information:
Kristina Prunerová, coordinator of Burma projects, tel: 420 777 787 917
Marie Peřinová, head of Burma projects, tel: 420 777 787 975
People in Need
This post is in: Press Release
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