THE PEOPLE OF 2004

He is also widely believed to have organized the attack on opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s convoy as she and her supporters were traveling through Depayin, Sagaing Division (dozens, perhaps hundreds were beaten to death in the massacre), and to have been instrumental in her subsequent arrest.

The US State Department has noted his role in the attack. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher told reporters after Soe Win succeeded Khin Nyunt: “We note that the new prime minister was reportedly directly involved in the decision to carry out the brutal attack on Aung San Suu Kyi and her convoy on May 30th, 2003.”

On September 18, as secretary-1 of the State Peace and Development Council or SPDC, Soe Win signed the order to dismiss foreign minister Win Aung and his deputy.

Soe Win was once quoted as saying at a local gathering of the Union Solidarity and Development Association, or USDA, in Prome that “the SPDC [State Peace and Development Council] not only will not talk to the NLD [National League for Democracy] but also would never hand over power to the NLD.”