Aung San Suu Kyi takes oath of office

Alison Clarke
WVoN co-editor 

The struggle of well-known Burmese pro-democracy champion, Aung San Suu Kyi, took an historic turn today when she and other opposition members of the National League for Democracy (NLD) took their oath of office in a special ceremony.

The ceremony had been delayed following the success of the opposition in parliamentary elections on April 1, because it wanted to change the wording of the oath they had to swear before taking their seats.

The oath states that elected members will “safeguard” the constitution upholding military rule, something that the NLD has pledged to resist.

However, on Monday Suu Kyi said she would take the oath “for the country and for the people” so that they could get on with the business of politics.

The strategy of taking seats in a government that is still dominated by the military is seen by some observers as a risky one, but Suu Kyi insists that”only time will tell“.