Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has said that boycotting the upcoming November 2015 election is an “option” if a military-drafted constitution that bars her from becoming president remains unchanged.
Myanmar Leader Aung San Suu Kyi says that she may boycott the November 2015 Elections
On Friday she sat down with Reuters. “We don’t think that boycotting the elections is the best choice. But we are not ruling out it altogether. We are leaving our options open.”, she said.
Her party won Myanmar’s last real election in 1990 by a landslide, but the military nullified the result.
“They (military government) are quite hardline. When you consider fact that they are not interested in negotiations or in amending the constitution or in… taking over seriously the will of the people. Then how would you describe them? You can hardly say they are moderates.”
The Nobel laureate says the U.S. may be encouraging complacency in Myanmar.
“The United States would say that they have pressed the government on reform, but on the other hand they have congratulated them on what they’ve done, because they want to encourage them further in their direction. And I always ask whether it actually encourages them (Myanmar government) to do more, it simply made them more complacent. And stops them (Myanmar government) from doing more.”
The election is scheduled for November.
Ventuno/Reuters