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The Lady: What makes an internationally celebrated political figure what she is.

By Jewel Philemon

“I have been free for more than a month. Some people may think that that is long enough. Others may think that that is not quite long enough.”

These are the words of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi who was detained under house arrest for fifteen years by the military junta in Burma, for her efforts in trying to bring democracy to her country.

I first learned of Daw Suu Kyi in 2009, when I was sixteen. I attended an event at Speakers’ Corner, organized by human rights group Maruah, which called for the release of Daw Suu Kyi. I was surprised to see a turnout of over four hundred participants, urging the government of Singapore to mediate with the Burmese junta to release Daw Suu Kyi, who was under house arrest at that time.