- Wednesday, February 26, 2025
By: Shubham Ghosh
INDIA on Tuesday (7) said it was “disturbed” by neighbouring Myanmar’s conviction of Aung San Suu Kyi, its deposed leader, and called for the rule of law and democratic processes to be valued.
Arindam Bagchi, spokesperson of India’s ministry of external affairs, said in a statement, “We are disturbed at the recent verdicts. As a neighbouring democracy, India has been consistently supportive of the democratic transition in Myanmar.”
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The Indian ministry’s reaction came after Suu Kyi, 72, a former state counsellor of Myanmar, was handed a four-year jail term over accusations of inciting dissent. Her sentence was later reduced to two years.
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In his statement, Bagchi also said, “We believe that the rule of law and the democratic process must be upheld. Any development that undermines these processes and accentuates differences is a matter of deep concern.”
“It is our sincere hope that keeping their nation’s future in mind, efforts would be made by all sides to advance the path of dialogue,” he added.
Myanmar, which has seen years of military junta rule, was rocked by huge protests after the armed forces seized power in a coup in February this year. The forces resorted to a crackdown in which hundreds of people, including children, were killed.
Suu Kyi, the leader of the National League for Democracy and who has been the country’s face of democracy before the world, was among the key people who were detained by the military after the coup. Her latest sentencing is one of the firsts in a series of rulings that followed.
