A vote to remove the “freedom of the city of Brighton and Hove” from former Burmese leader Aung San Suu Kyi is due to take place next week (Thursday 19 October).
The honorary award, conferred by Brighton and Hove City Council in 2011, recognised “her contribution in fighting totalitarianism and advocating for human rights and individual liberty in her country of Burma”.
She had already been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and the US Congressional Gold Medal during the long years that she spent under house arrest in Burma which now calls itself Myanmar.
The vote on whether to strip Aung San Suu Kyi of the freedom of Brighton and Hove will be held at a special meeting of the council at Hove Town Hall.
A report to councillors said: “Between 2016 and 2021 she was the State Counsellor of Myanmar (equivalent to a prime minister) and Minister of Foreign Affairs.
“Unfortunately, this was a time when gross violations of human rights and what many describe as genocide was conducted against the Rohingya community in Burma.
“Aung San Suu Kyi did not take any steps or advocate the protection of the minority Muslim Rohingya community and some say she supported the actions of the military in carrying out the atrocities.
“These human rights violations continue.
“Many cities, including Oxford, the City of London Corporation, Edinburgh and Dublin have revoked the freedom of the city awarded to Aung San Suu Kyi. Amnesty International withdrew her human rights award. These are only some of the examples of awards she lost.
“In 2018, Brighton and Hove City Council considered a joint motion from the Labour and Co-operative and Green groups which stated: ‘This council resolves, in the light of continuing lack of protection of the human rights of the Rohingya people in Myanmar, many of whom are now refugees in Bangladesh, to remove at the earliest opportunity the freedom of the city granted to Aung San Suu Kyi in 2011.’
“A two thirds majority was required to pass the resolution to remove the freedom of city by full council and this threshold was not reached. The award therefore remains in place.
“It is some five years since the matter was considered and there has been no improvement in the human rights situation in Burma as it affects the Rohingya people.
“To continue to allow the honorary freedom of the city awarded in 2011 to remain in place risks the council being associated, albeit indirectly, with indifference to the suffering of the Rohingya people and is inconsistent with the council’s values and anti-racist strategy.
“It is therefore proposed that the conferring of the freedom of the city be reconsidered with a recommendation to revoke it.
“Accordingly, a further special meeting has been convened to consider the proposal again to remove the freedom of the city from Aung San Suu Kyi.
“If passed, the freedom of the city will be revoked with immediate effect.”
The special council meeting is due to take place at Hove Town Hall at 3.30pm on Thursday (19 October). The meeting is scheduled to be webcast on the council’s website.
So this Saint-turned-Sinner who should never have been given the freedom of our city in the first place since she has nothing to do with it is STILL worth a FULL HOUR OF FULL COUNCIL time in a special meeting for a decision which should take 5 minutes. Meantime the electorate are offered less and less contact with the council at every level and face a still-pathetic fraction of full council committe ‘public engagement’ time, having had 7 out of 11 public questions slashed at the last Full Council meeting. A disgusting state of affairs revealing the depth of contempt our elected public servants have for we citizens.
Excellent comment – I could not agree more.
Well said! Why is the council engaging in this political stuff anyway. It’s just another form of ‘othering’ ie: people across the world who we have no link too, have done nothing for us get more time that the BH residents. The council website has been reduced to the bare minimum to make it hard for users, can’t phone anyone, you write to councillors who are SUPPOSED to represent us and they don’t respond, you ask questions at Council meetings and despite vetting they still don’t answer! And they give a whole to discuss this absolute villain. Says it all about what a sham this council is.
Well done. Thanks for sharing (your complete ignorance of Myanmar politics).
Aung San Suu Kyi is a Burmese politician, Buddhist, diplomat, author, and a 1991 Nobel Peace Prize laureate . She is now in prison: put in jail by the military junta that now runs Myanmar. The United Nations, most European countries, and the United States condemned her arrests, trials, and sentences as politically motivated.
And this petulant proposal to “strip” Aung San Suu Kyi of the freedom of Brighton and Hove City is just an example of that political motive and the allegations of genocide against the Muslim Rohingya.
This proposal risks the council being associated with that very undemocratic junta.
She was born in 1947. Her father, Aung San, allied with the Japanese during World War II but founded the modern Burmese army and negotiated Burma’s independence from the United Kingdom in 1947; he was assassinated by his rivals in the same year.
It is a complex issue and it is assumed the cllrs will have a free vote and not “whipped” by their political party. And thanks goodness the vote will not be by simple majority.
Well said!
As Daw Suu commented on 6 October 2018 in an interview with NHK World (Japan): “I don’t care about the prizes and honors as such. I’m sorry that friends are not as steadfast as they might be. Because I think friendship means understanding, basically trying to understand rather than to just make your own judgement. But prizes come and go……” [Page 107 – Volume1 – “Burma’s Voices of Freedom” 2023]
The Report to Counsellors apparently states that: “Aung San Suu Kyi did not take any steps or advocate the protection of the minority Muslim Rohingya community and some say she supported the actions of the military in carrying out the atrocities”. This account has no basis in fact. As Daw Suu told the European Commission on 2 May 2017: “I’m a bit confused when you say that we have been doing nothing about it, because we have been doing everything we can, all the time” [Page 84 – The Voice of Hope 2023] – and much more.
Thanks, Roy. These wretched councillors don’t understand the complexities of Myanmar state politics, never will and have never been there (I’ve spent some part of 20 years there on various conservation projects (and I’m affiliated with an orphanage in Yangon) and if you speak to the people there, they always knew she was put in an impossible situation: you either speak out, get put in jail, sorry, under house arrest (AGAIN) where you can do no good at all or you try to stay free and do what little good that you can. This vote will go through, largely because the council think it’ll make them look good amongst their virtue-signaling mates at Oxford and London; In fact, it just makes them look peurile and stupid. So, may I respectfully suggest to the council: do your jobs: empty the bins, keep the lights on. Stop trying to be geo-political smart-a**es.
Who actually cares ?
Will it fix the rubbish collection?
Will if fix the deficit in bh budget?
Will it fix potholes?
I thought not
It’s not a complex issue, it’s a very simple one. This person has absolutely nothing to do with B&H, so why waste time holding a debate and vote that is of zero relevance to residents or the administration of a small city on the opposite side of the world from where she is.
It is most unfortunate that the Council are considering such a motion at a time when Daw Aung San Suu Kyi languishes in prison in poor health, condemned to 33 years incarceration on trumped up charges by the current military regime.
Daw Suu can however defend herself, if Councillors are willing to read the excerpts from her speeches and interviews 2010 – 2020 published earlier this year by the American Buddhist scholar Alan Clements and his British colleague Fergus Harlow. Daw Suu answers in her own words all the allegations made against her over her Rohingya policy. She refutes them point by point. She denies that she kept silent on the issue.
Daw Suu should be given the democratic right to defend herself.
The book is titled “The Voice of Hope- Aung San Suu Kyi – From Prison” World Dharma Publications. If Sarah Booker-Lewis cares to contact me by email, I can send her an electronic copy which she is welcome to distribute to Councillors. The book is a companion to four lengthy volumes of interviews with Daw Suu and her NLD colleagues – but the Councillors would need to pay for those volumes!
Derek Tonkin – Former Burma Desk Officer – Foreign Office
I hope this text finds you well. I am writing to express my deep concern regarding the recent proposal to revoke Aung San Suu Kyi’s freedom of the city. As a volunteer, and activist committed to the principles of justice, human rights, and democracy, I believe it is crucial to protect the fundamental values that our city stands for.
Aung San Suu Kyi has been a symbol of courage and resilience in the face of adversity. Her unwavering commitment to democracy and her advocacy for human rights have inspired people around the world. She has shown remarkable leadership and dedication in her quest for a free and just society in Myanmar.
While it is essential to acknowledge the complex challenges Myanmar faces, it is equally important to recognize the role Aung San Suu Kyi has played in pushing for positive change. She has been a steadfast advocate for peaceful dialogue and reconciliation in a region plagued by turmoil. Also, currently, she is about 79 years old, in the prison in Myanmar under the military dictatorship.
Revoking her freedom of the city would send a distressing message to those who look up to her as a symbol of hope. It would be seen as a setback for the principles of freedom, democracy, and human rights that our city values and promotes.
I kindly urge you to reconsider this decision and to maintain Aung San Suu Kyi’s freedom of the city. By doing so, we can continue to stand for the principles that our community holds dear and support those who strive for positive change in the world.
Thank you for your attention to this matter, and I hope that you will take into account the voices of concerned citizens who believe in upholding the values of justice and democracy.
It is very obvious that the council is completely unaware and ignorant of the current situation in Myanmar. I’m surprised how people are judgemental without knowing the facts.
This action show a negligible understanding of the political situation in Myanmar. Aung San Suu Kyi was only leader at the behest of the junta who always controlled one house and could over rule her at any time as subsequent events made clear. She and her party have always advocated reconciliation. Tacitly or overtly, this move sends support to an oppressive junta who are ruling unelected and brutally repressing any opposition. The council should consider if this is the kind of regime they wish to support. Do they?
Dear Rose, never be surprised at them; they are stupid, lazy, ill-informed sheep. When they have 1/100th of Aung San Suu Kyi’s courage, maybe they will get in touch. Thank you for your kindness and understanding to our situation and The Lady.
MIn Hein, thank you for sharing your wisdom about the past and current situation in Myanmar. The council should be thoroughly ashamed of themselves.