Myanmar: Aung San Suu Kyi

From Amnesty International
Myanmar's military junta put Nobel Peace laureate and pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi on trial last week on flimsy charges that could land her in the country's notorious Insein Prison for 5 years. Suu Kyi has already spent much of the past 20 years under house arrest. Her prolonged imprisonment in Insein Prison, which has been referred to as the "darkest hell-hole in Burma," could effectively be a death sentence given her declining health.
Amnesty has fought on Suu Kyi's behalf for 2 decades. We stood by her when Myanmar's military junta first put her under house arrest in 1989 after she channeled mass protests into a major democratic political movement and bravely confronted the brutal military rulers' power.
Despite the long periods of confinement she's endured for the past 20 years, Aung San Suu Kyi's commitment to the struggle for human rights has been an unmatched symbol of hope to the people of Myanmar and an inspiration to those dedicated to justice and human rights the world over.
So when we got news that she could be sent to jail, we called on activists from every corner of the globe to take a stand again on her behalf.
More than 7,000 Amnesty supporters in Australia sent letters to the chairman of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and he responded just 3 days later with a strong public statement calling for the democratic leader's release and expressing concern for Suu Kyi's health.
That same day, we again reached out to Amnesty's global movement to seize the momentum and they responded with nearly 40,000 appeals to Myanmar's ruler, Sr. Gen. Than Shwe.
We know that appealing to authoritarian rulers seems like an uphill battle; but we've proven time and again that even military dictatorships and other repressive regimes are no match for Amnesty's millions-strong global movement.
Just last year, Ma Khin Khin Leh, another prisoner of conscience in Myanmar, obtained her release after Amnesty activists sent tens of thousands of letters on her behalf. And this month, Roxana Saberi, a journalist who had been thrown in prison in Iran on trumped-up charges of espionage, was released after Amnesty's global movement brought pressure to bear on the government.
Amnesty has worked tirelessly every day around the clock for nearly 50 years on behalf of individuals at risk of serious human rights violations whether they're in the public spotlight or concealed in the shadows.
Amnesty International is there to shine the penetrating light of hope into the world's darkest corners.
That's why we're hoping you'll make a monthly gift of just $5 today to help us ensure we can continue to be there as a beacon of hope for those at risk of rights abuses. Join the Partners of Conscience, Amnesty International's monthly giving program.
By making a gift today, you'll help us keep the hope alive for Aung San Suu Kyi and others like her.
Sincerely,
Mike O'Reilly
Director, Campaign for Individuals at Risk
Amnesty International USA