Suu Kyi needs proper care

The military dictators in Burma continue to provide good argument about why democracy, in the cliche'd phrase, is the worst possible political system except for all the others. The regime has become almost entirely closed off, and is unaccountable to citizens, neighbours and the world. It was good to hear from former prime minister Samak Sundaravej that Thailand will urge Burma to give in and accept the United Nations' advice.

That should be standard Thai policy in any case. But the government and others should be doing more right now to find out the facts about the health of the country's best-known citizen, Aung San Suu Kyi.

The state of Mrs Suu Kyi has now gone far beyond politics, and is in the world public domain. Last month, the chief UN mediator Ibrahim Gambari failed to see the Nobel Peace Prize laureate as expected. That might have been put down to political disagreement of some sort. But last weekend, reliable spokesmen of the National League for Democracy (NLD) party said Mrs Suu Kyi had gone on a hunger strike. She claims, according to the NLD leaders, that she will not eat until she is released from her house arrest which, so far as is known, is illegal even under the harsh laws of the military council and government.

That makes her condition the business of pretty well the whole world. The democracy advocate is frail, getting on in years. She has a strong will, but an extended fast - and three weeks is certainly a long time - requires careful supervision. The most troubling aspect of this situation, for now, is that the Burmese authorities show no responsibility. Questions about Mrs Suu Kyi's health are met with silence. The US government yesterday finally complained publicly, stating that it was concerned about the well-being of the pro-democracy leader, but no independent Burmese group or foreign country can find out such a simple matter.

This is a dictatorship which had to be shamed into accepting any aid for its citizens after devastating Cyclone Nargis, despite a huge outpouring of sympathy from people around the world. In recent months, it has simply shown top UN officials the door, specifically Mr Gambari, whose mission to try to ease some democratic reforms through the cracks in the diplomatic door have crashed and burned.

Now, faced with an extremely simple question, the generals show just how unaccountable an anti-democratic regime can become.

It is an uncomplicated matter: Is Mrs Suu Kyi on a hunger strike, and if so what is the state of her health and care? To the generals, who see foreign-led plots for domestic insurrection everywhere they look, the inquiry probably is a super-political conspiracy. In fact, Mrs Suu Kyi has thrilled the world with her principled, non-violent stand against her government. That world is genuinely concerned that The Lady may be at risk, even harming herself, with a dangerous, extended fast. Around the globe, concerned people simply want to know what is happening.

And it is a valid question. In most civilised countries, the state of health of an opposition leader, even a detained person, is easy enough to determine. Mrs Suu Kyi has now been held far past the deadline last May for her release under the regime's laws. Her state of health is, literally, a state secret.

This is what happens when a regime abandons all pretence of democracy. It is unaccountable to anyone. The response to world concern for Mrs Suu Kyi proves that democratic reform is needed in Burma, as soon as possible.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/110908_News/11Sep2008_news12.php