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Aung San Suu Kyi makes election debut
National League for Democracy wins seats in groundbreaking Myanmar elections
Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) party won 40 of the 45 available seats in Sunday’s poll, the Election Commission announced on state television, dealing a crushing blow to a ruling party created by the former military junta that kept her locked her up for 15 years. (Getty Images)
She fell short of giving the election the full-fledged endorsement that Western countries may be seeking before lifting sanctions imposed over the former military rulers’ human rights record. But her criticism of the vote was restrained, and the EU hinted it could lift some sanctions by the end of the month. (Getty Images)
The charismatic Suu Kyi, who led the opposition to military rule for two decades, will take a seat in the lower house. (Getty Images)
“It is not so much our triumph as a triumph of the people, who have decided that they must be involved in the political process of this country,” Suu Kyi told cheering supporters at the NLD’s headquarters in Yangon. (Getty Images)
“We hope that this will be the beginning of a new era, when there will be more emphasis on the role of the people in the everyday politics of our country. We hope that all other parties that took part in the elections will be in a position to cooperate with us to create a genuinely democratic atmosphere.” (Getty Images)
The contested seats account for only a small fraction of the 440-seat lower house and 224-seat senate, which both remain dominated by allies of the former military rulers. (Getty Images)
But Suu Kyi, daughter of slain independence hero Aung San, will hold wide influence because of her huge popularity, until a full general election due in 2015. (Getty Images)
