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NEWS• VIEWS • INFORMATION • ADVICE





Aung San Suu Kyi meets the NASUWT



An NASUWT activist stole a march on world leaders by becoming one of the first foreigners to meet Burma’s pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.



Tony Stokle was granted an audience before Christmas at the Headquarters of Ms Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) party in the Burmese capital, Rangoon.



Immense pride



He followed in the footsteps of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who met the Nobel Prize laureate following her release from 15 years of house arrest in December.



Tony, 51, who hails from the North East, spent around half an hour with Ms Suu Kyi and was accompanied by his wife, Ann, and son, Declan.



He spoke of the immense pride he felt during the meeting, saying: “What an experience!



“She was so normal, showing that it is ordinary people filled with great courage who can change the world.



“We are all inspired and called to follow her example.”



Mr Stokle, who has been teaching part time in the country and working to support anti-poverty organisations, said of Ms Suu Kyi: “She had a little difficulty with our North East accent at first.



“She talked about her two sons, Kim and Alexander, and her dog and family life in general. She was very focused and not distracted at all.”



Mr Stokle said they discussed politics and the situation in the country.



She was very aware of the desperate poverty of many people in the country and the ‘huge gap’ that existed between rich and poor in Burma.



Changing perceptions



He added: “She wants to change people’s perception of politics. She wants more people to get involved, more ‘good’ people and more young people.



“She wants more people to speak out against injustice in their country. She asks them not to be afraid but to stand with her in the fight for democracy. She was clearly telling us that she alone cannot bring about democracy, but that it requires all of us to work for it.”



Mr Stokle was able to present Ms Suu Kyi with the Freedom of the City of Newcastle, an honour collected on her behalf after she was awarded it last June. He said: “I explained what the certificate meant, that it was the highest honour the City of Newcastle could bestow on her and that she was now entitled to graze her cows on the Town Moor.



“She said she didn’t have cows but would it be possible to walk her dog there!



“We gave her a picture of Wai Hnin, from Burma Campaign UK, receiving the award on her behalf.



“She knew that Wai Hnin’s father was in prison as a political prisoner and had indeed met her mother and sister. She was very pleased to receive the award and promised to get the scroll framed and displayed in her home.”



• Ms Suu Kyi and the NLD have operated outside of the political system for years. Despite winning a landslide election victory in 1990, her party’s result has not been recognised by the ruling military generals.

• It was announced late last year that the NLD would be standing in parliamentary byelections, which are expected in the coming months.

• The party has dropped its boycott of elections and will put up candidates for all 48 seats that have become vacant in the forthcoming by-elections.

• The NLD and the international community have given a cautious welcome to reforms undertaken by the current government, but according to Burma Campaign UK the regime has still not delivered any real change.

• The military and pro-military parties are set to dominate the parliament after elections and it is unlikely the NLD will have many seats. The party’s 1990 election victory stunned the country’s authoritarian rulers and they refused to acknowledge the result.

• Burma suffered a period of intense repression after that election and Ms Suu Kyi spent much of the following 20 years in jail or under house arrest.

• The military junta eventually wrote a new constitution, which entrenched the power of the military. They held a sham election last year that was boycotted by the NLD – the only opposition group strong enough to challenge the army.

• However, President Thein Sein – himself a member of the former ruling junta – has instituted enough reforms for observers to believe that real change may be taking place in the country.



Mr Stokle has been blogging about his experiences in Burma. You can read the full post of his meeting and other posts about his time in the country at www.nasuwtinburma.wordpress.com.



For more details about Burma Campaign UK, visit www.burmacampaign.org.uk. The NASUWT’s international web page is at www.nasuwt.org.uk/International.