PDP7 - Speech to a Mass Rally at the Shwedagon Pagoda

Author Bio: This speech was given by Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the National League for Democracy, who was known for her leadership in the democratic opposition. She was the daughter of a Burmese nationalist and was commonly perceived as her father's "alter ego"; Aung San Suu Kyi stated that she felt as though it would not be acceptable if she did not assist in the fight for democracy, being that she was the daughter of an esteemed politician. The information in the speech is reliable because Aung San Suu Kyi outright distinguished the difference between the facts and her personal opinions. She spoke in favor of human rights and unity, taking on an important political and cultural leadership role in world history.

Date/Context: Aung San Suu Kyi delivered this speech in 1988. Historically, the speech marked the start of her campaign against the military regime in Burma. Her description of the situation in Burma at the time in which she gave this speech illustrated that the people, particularly students, had been protesting against the one-party rule in their country for quite some time, and that there was some blood shed already. It also seemed that some of the people in Burma had been questioning Aung San Suu Kyi's ability to lead them to their ultimate goal, democracy, and that her understanding of Burmese politics was impaired; This led Aung San Suu Kyi to address the people's concerns about herself during the speech. Globally, this campaign for a democratic political system may have caused another push for freedom in countries that were still under authoritarian rule.

Summary: In this speech, Aung San Suu Kyi asked the people of Burma to listen to her solution to end one-party rule and how to implement democracy into their country. She addressed the people's concerns over her past participation in Burmese politics, or lack of it, by explaining details of her personal life and why she decided to return to politics after previously isolating herself from it. Aung San Suu Kyi reinforced the idea of unity throughout her speech, providing evidence of how they were only going to achieve all of their goals if they stand together. She explains the rift between the people and the army, highlighting how the army needs to become a force that the people can trust and rely upon, as per the army's original purpose.

Key Quotation: '"I would like to reiterate our emphatic demands and protests, namely that we have no desire at all for a referendum, that the one-party system should be dismantled, that a multi-party system of government should be established, and we call for free and fair elections to be arranged as quickly as possible.'"