Was Win Tin Speaking for Suu Kyi?

There is growing speculation among Burma observers that an opinion piece that appeared in The Washington Post last week actually expressed the views of National League for Democracy (NLD) leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

The commentary, written by senior NLD member Win Tin, denounced next year’s planned election as a sham and criticized US Senator James Webb, who recently visited Burma, for advocating engagement with Burma’s ruling regime.

Speaking to The Irrawaddy on Tuesday, Win Tin denied suggestions that he wrote the piece on Suu Kyi’s behalf.

“If the commentary reflects Suu Kyi’s opinions, [it’s because] we have very similar thinking. But we haven’t met for ages, so I don’t know what she is thinking now,” he said.

He added that the fact he quoted Suu Kyi in the commentary shows that her views are similar to his own, which he said were fundamentally in line with the party’s political stance.

“I’m a hardliner in the NLD, but I don’t go against the party,” he said.

Win Tin was summoned for questioning for several hours on Saturday. He said he was taken into custody because the authorities wanted to ask him about financial support he allegedly received from a foreign country, as well as his contact with opposition members who were arrested earlier this month.

Some suspect that his arrest might also have had something to do with his commentary, which strongly rebuked Webb for urging the democratic opposition to participate in next year’s election.

“That commentary was a response to the meeting between Suu Kyi and Webb, and to Webb’s comments. It accurately reflected Suu Kyi’s views,” said Moe Zaw Oo, the secretary of the National League for Democracy (Liberated Area) Foreign Affairs Committee.

Thakin Chan Tun, a veteran politician and diplomat, said, “Win Tin and Suu Kyi have the same goal. He is one of the leaders of the NLD and will not neglect his view. Most members of the party agree with him.”

Eighty-year-old Win Tin spent 19 years in Rangoon’s notorious Insein Prison until his release last year. Since then, he has spoken frequently to international and Burmese exiled media, often criticizing the ruling regime’s plans to create a military-backed civilian government.

“Some international observers view next year’s planned elections as an opportunity. But under the circumstances imposed by the military’s constitution, the election will be a sham,” he wrote in his commentary.

irrawaddy