"It was amazing. Columns of people came from all over, and where we met in downtown Rangoon, there were about 500,000 people. At the same time, in other townships, everywhere people were marching for the same things, for democracy and human rights." [17]
Aung Din, 1988
Burma's Failed Uprising | BBC | 1988
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Suu Kyi returned to Burma in 1988 to care for her dying mother. When she arrived, tensions were high, as student protests against the regime rocked the country. These protests forced Ne Win to resign, but the new State Peace and Development Council shared his suppressive ideologies.
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"I could not as my father's daughter remain indifferent to all that was going on." [18]
Aung San Suu Kyi
"The chief aim of the National League for Democracy (NLD) and other organizations working for the establishment of a democratic government in Burma is to bring about social and political changes which will guarantee a peaceful, stable and progressive society where human rights, as outlined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, are protected by the rule of law." [19]
Aung San Suu Kyi, 1989
"She [Aung San Suu Kyi] believed that it was time to establish a democratic government in Burma; it was time to have a government of the people. Burma had run by a dictator for the last 30-some years, and she believed that his regime had caused tremendous problems for Burma. She blamed a lot of Burma’s backwardness, poverty, and corruption on Ne Win. But she never spoke about him or his government with bitterness or anger. She was logical, practical and almost forgiving. But she was also firm and clear about the need for change." [20]
Marshall Adair, Political/Economic Counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Rangoon
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"When the army shoots, it shoots to hit." [21]
Ne Win
“It was a tragic scene to see the dead bodies of our brothers and sisters” [22]
Myat Htoo Razak, Protestor