Aung San Suu Kyi again enters Burmese politics

Aung San Suu Kyi will again enter Burmese politics when she runs in a by-election before the end of the year. Last time Suu Kyi was in politics she won the 1990 Presidential elections, which were annulled by the military, which led to her spending most of her time since under house arrest.

Suu Kyi’s was made possible by the National League for Democracy (NLD) party being re-registered on Friday. This follows a change in the constitution which allowed people who had served jail time to run. Many people in Burma have served jail time, including Aung San Suu Kyi, for their struggles for freedom from military rule.

The announcement may of been timed to coincide with the announcement that Hillary Clinton will soon visit Burma. Mrs Clinton, the US Secretary of State will be the highest ranking US official to visit Burma since the 1962 military coup. The visit to the resource rich country, which neighbours China, is being made possible by recent reforms which the US are publicly labeling, “flickers of progress”.