19-6-2024 (YANGON) Myanmar authorities have arrested 22 individuals for commemorating the birthday of the nation’s imprisoned democracy icon, Aung San Suu Kyi, according to reports from local media outlets today. The arrests, which took place in Mandalay, Myanmar’s second-largest city, underscore the ongoing crackdown on dissent and the suppression of fundamental freedoms in the country.
The detained individuals were reportedly taken into custody by police for the simple act of posting pictures of themselves wearing flowers in their hair – a longstanding symbol associated with Suu Kyi’s iconic appearance. Eleven Media, citing an anonymous official, reported that the arrests occurred after the individuals shared these images online, in a show of solidarity with the 79-year-old former leader on her birthday.
Other local media outlets corroborated the reports, suggesting that around a dozen individuals were apprehended in the central Myanmar city for either wearing flowers or publicly praying with them, in a peaceful tribute to Suu Kyi. Disturbingly, a prominent pro-junta Telegram account even shared photographs purportedly depicting those arrested, including one image showing five individuals with their legs placed in stocks – a draconian form of restraint and punishment.
Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate and former de facto leader of Myanmar, has been detained by the military since the coup d’état in February 2021, which toppled her democratically elected government. The coup and the subsequent brutal crackdown on dissent have ignited a widespread armed uprising, which the military has been struggling to quell despite its heavy-handed tactics.
The junta has consistently rebuffed numerous requests from foreign leaders and diplomats to meet with Suu Kyi, who has reportedly suffered from health problems during her more than three years in detention. Her only known encounter with a foreign envoy since the coup occurred in July last year, when the then-Thai foreign minister, Don Pramudwinai, claimed to have met her for over an hour.
Suu Kyi is currently serving a 27-year sentence imposed by a junta court after a trial that was widely condemned by rights groups as a sham, aimed at silencing her and excluding her from politics. In a rare communication, her son told AFP in February that she was in “strong spirits” after receiving a letter from her – their first direct contact since her detention during the coup.
