More than six weeks have passed since Aung San Suu Kyi, democracy leader of Myanmar (Burma), was released from house arrest by the military junta known as the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC).
On May 6, hundreds of people waited for her in the sweltering heat in front of the National League for Democracy (NLD) headquarters in Yangon (Rangoon). ``Daw (honorific prefix for women) Aung San Suu Kyi!'' I listened with great emotion as her name was called repeatedly at the signal of a man's voice.
For 18 months Suu Kyi held talks behind closed doors with the SPDC and has now agreed to continue the secret discussions. But will the people of Myanmar accept this agreement? Once Suu Kyi has more opportunities to meet the people, she will probably face growing calls for an explanation.
Suu Kyi reportedly did not consider her release an event of huge importance since she knew it would not mean total freedom of her meetings with NLD officials.Even so, Suu Kyi probably embraced release because she saw the people's zeal toward democracy waning. She may have been trying to rekindle their ardor by appearing before them.
The people of Myanmar, where the government keeps a tight lid on information, must rely on rumor to guess the political and economic moves. They are invariably disappointed, particularly after being swayed by the rumors, and feel even more trapped by the declining economic situation.
Will a democratic regime really come into power? If Suu Kyi keeps silent, the people's impatience could transform itself into distrust in her.
During a telephone interview with The Asahi Shimbun on May 20, Suu Kyi affirmed the ``possibility of compromising with military rule if it is for the sake of the people.''
Nevertheless, a week after the interview, on the anniversary marking its victory of the 1990 general election, the NLD issued a statement that incorporated its former political platform, such as confirming the number of parliamentary seats that reflected NLD's landslide victory.
On the other hand, the SPDC has set out to transfer the administration while the military retains the leadership. Thus no clear points of contact between the two parties are in sight. By continuing to talk to the junta, Suu Kyi may be eyeing a crucial policy change in the form of cooperation with military rule. Perhaps she has kept her lips sealed, regarding it as premature to seek the understanding of the people.
Yet when she was asked during the telephone interview whether the people of Myanmar are ready to embrace democratization, she seemed somewhat offended and replied, ``Certainly.''
She explained that democracy should not be handed out as a finished product, but developed together. Suu Kyi once again has the chance to turn this into reality.
What form of compromise does she have in mind? I hope she will share her thoughts with the people, who are her strongest ally.
* * *The author is an Asahi Shimbun correspondent at the newspaper's Asian General Bureau in Bangkok