The Lady’s Turn

In September 2008, the junta tracked Nilar Thein down, and she is now serving a 65-year prison term in Thayet Prison in central Burma.

To make a terrible situation even worse, her husband Kyaw Min Yu was already in prison when she was arrested, and is also serving a 65 year-sentence—he is in Taunggyi Prison, Shan State. The activist couple’s four-year-old daughter occasionally travels with her aunt and uncle to visit her mother and father behind bars, but will most likely grow up without their presence.

Nilar Thein has been recognized for her bravery and commitment by People in Need, a Czech-based organization who awarded her its Homo Homini prize for her promotion of democracy, human rights and nonviolent solutions to political conflicts. But the award brings no comfort for the suffering she endures due to being separated from her daughter.

Looking back over the struggle of Burmese women in the modern era, many more deserve recognition, because their status in Burmese political society has been suppressed since shortly after the time the country achieved independence.

Even during the British colonial era, women in Burma had more rights than now. In 1929, Hnin Mya became the country’s first woman senator. Then in 1937, a distinguished female doctor named Saw Has was elected and given the prestigious civil honor “Member of the British Empire.” In 1953, five years after Burma gained its independence, the country has had one female minister—Ba Maung Chain—who became the minister representing Karen State.

But since the time of the 1962 military coup staged by the late dictator Ne Win, the role of women in Burmese politics has been almost nonexistent, due primarily to the fact that each successive government has been led by military and ex-military men.

Even in the new “civilian” government, few women have had the opportunity to crack Burma’s iron ceiling. In the 2010 election, there were only 20 women among the 659 persons elected to Parliament, and 14 of those women belonged to the military-controlled Union Solidarity and Development Party.

The daughters of three former prime ministers, known as the “three princesses,” took part in the election, but each was defeated by a USDP candidate. Recently, all three said that they would not contest a by-election slated to be held later this year, explaining that although they took part in the November 2010 election in the belief it would create some political space, they didn’t see that happening once the new government was formed.

Under these circumstances, it is highly unlikely that Suu Kyi or any of her female colleagues will take office or play a crucial role in Burma’s government in the foreseeable future. While their courage, confidence, commitment and compassion have won more than enough hearts and minds among the Burmese people to secure a landslide victory far exceeding Yingluck’s in Thailand, the insecure men who control Burma show no signs of allowing anyone outside their close-minded clique, let alone a female pro-democracy leader, to lead the nation.

The men in Naypyidaw, however, have failed miserably and run their country into the ground. It’s time for them to step aside and give the Lady a chance.