Date
Event
June 19,
1945
Aung San Suu Kyi is born.
July 19,
1947
1960
On June 19, 1945, Aung San Suu Kyi is born in
Rangoon, Burma (now Yangon, Myanmar). Her
father, Aung San, is the commander of the Burma
Independence Army, and her mother, Ma Khin Kyi,
is a senior nurse. Suu Kyi is named after her
father, mother, and grandmother, and has two
older brothers, though her favorite brother
drowns at an early age.
General Aung San is assassinated.
When Suu Kyi is only two years old, her father,
General Aung San, is assassinated, just six
months before Myanmar becomes independent.
Her mother, now known as Daw Khin Kyi,
becomes a prominent public figure, working for
the External Affairs Ministry.
Suu Kyi's mother is appointed ambassador
to India.
In 1960, Suu Kyi's mother, Daw Khin Kyi, is
appointed Myanmar's ambassador to India. Suu
Kyi joins her mother in New Delhi, where she
attends high school. She graduates from Lady
Shri Ram College of Delhi University.
1967
Suu Kyi earns her bachelor's degree from
Oxford University.
From 1964 to 1967, Suu Kyi attends Oxford
University, and she earns her bachelor's degree in
philosophy, politics, and economics at St. Hugh's
College in 1967. She grows close to the family of
Lord Gore-Booth, former British ambassador to
Myanmar, and meets Michael Aris, her future
husband.
1969
Suu Kyi moves to New York, where she joins
the U.N. Secretariat.
In 1969, Suu Kyi moves to New York to pursue
graduate work, but she postpones her studies to
join the U.N. Secretariat as Assistant Secretary.
She lives in New York until 1971, spending her
evenings and weekends volunteering at hospitals.
January 1,
1972
1987
Suu Kyi marries Michael Aris.
On January 1, 1972, Suu Kyi marries Michael Aris,
the Tibetan culture scholar she met at Oxford
University. They eventually have two sons. She
travels with him to Bhutan, where he becomes
the head of the Translation Department and tutors
the royal family. Suu Kyi takes a position as
Research Officer in the Royal Ministry of Foreign
Affairs.
Suu Kyi completes her fellowship in India.
While raising their two children, Suu Kyi
researches and writes several books, including a
profile of her father. The family spends time in
England, Japan, the United States, and India. Suu
Kyi completes her fellowship at the Indian
Institute of Advanced Studies in Shimla, India, in
1987.
August 26,
1988
Suu Kyi declares her support for a revolt
against General Ne Win.
In 1988, Suu Kyi returns to Myanmar to look after
her mother, who has fallen critically ill. The
country is in the midst of a revolution, as
protestors rally against the dictator General Ne
Win and his strict military junta. On August 26,
1988, Suu Kyi delivers a speech declaring her
support for the revolution.
September
24, 1988
Suu Kyi becomes the Secretary-General of
the National League for Democracy.
On September 24, 1988, the National League for
Democracy (NLD) forms, and Suu Kyi serves as
the Secretary-General. The NLD pursues a policy
of non-violence and civil disobedience, inspired by
the campaigns of Martin Luther King, Jr. and
Mahatma Gandhi. Suu Kyi launches a tour of the
country, giving speeches and calling for peaceful
democratic reform.
July 20,
1989
May 27,
1990
Suu Kyi is placed under house arrest.
Having defied the military junta's prohibition on
democratic speeches, Suu Kyi is placed under
house arrest at her home in Yangon. The
government claims she can go free if she agrees
to leave the country, but she refuses to do so
until the junta releases the country to a civilian
government and frees political prisoners. She
remains under house arrest until July 10, 1995.
The NLD wins democratic elections.
Despite Suu Kyi's imprisonment, her political
party, the NLD, wins democratic elections by 82%
on May 27, 1990. The military junta, however,
refuses to acknowledge these results and remains
in power. It formally annuls the results twenty
years later.
October 14,
1991
Suu Kyi receives the Nobel Peace Prize.
In recognition of her peaceful protest for a
democratic government, Suu Kyi receives a
number of human rights awards, including the
Nobel Peace Prize in 1991. Her sons, Alexander
and Kim, accept the award on her behalf.
September
23, 2000
Suu Kyi is placed under house arrest for the
second time.
Suu Kyi is released from house arrest in July
1995, and she continues to fight for democracy,
founding a representative committee in 1998.
Fearing travel restrictions, she is unable to visit
her husband, who dies of cancer in March 1999.
The military junta places her under house arrest
for the second time on September 23, 2000,
ostensibly for violating travel restrictions. She is
released on May 6, 2002.
May 6, 2003
Suu Kyi is placed under house arrest for the
third time.
After the NLD and pro-government demonstrators
clash in 2003, Suu Kyi is placed under house
arrest for the third time on May 6, 2003. The
international community calls for her release
throughout her imprisonment, and the
government relaxes the conditions of her house
arrest. However, shortly before her imprisonment
ends, she is sentenced to a further 18 months,
most likely to prevent her from participating in
parliamentary elections.
April 1,
2012
Suu Kyi wins a seat in parliament.
In 2010 a series of election laws prohibit Suu Kyi
from running, and the NLD refuses to register,
leading to its being disbanded. The NLD reregisters as a political party in November 2011,
and after an exhausting campaign, Suu Kyi wins a
seat in parliament on April 1, 2012. Her party
wins 43 of the 45 seats contested in the election.
She formally takes office on May 2, 2012,
becoming the leader of the opposition.
The only real prison is fear, and the only real
freedom is freedom from fear.
It
is not power that corrupts but fear. Fear of
losing power corrupts those who wield it and
fear of the scourge of power corrupts those
who are subject to it.
Human beings the world over need freedom
and security that they may be able to realize
their full potential.
