D.C. begins to sour on Suu Kyi amid violence in Myanmar

WASHINGTON — Washington lawmakers who once enthusiastically supported Aung San Suu Kyi’s rise to power in Myanmar have shifted this week to criticism over her silence in the face of a bloody military crackdown on ethnic minorities, the latest sign that the nation’s fragile democratic project is on tenuous footing.

Congressional leaders from both parties are adding their voices to the international condemnation of the violence in western Myanmar that has sent an estimated 164,000 Rohingya Muslims fleeing to Bangladesh and led to growing doubts about Suu Kyi’s leadership.

On Thursday, a bipartisan group of senators — Democrats Dick Durbin of Illinois, Dianne Feinstein of California, and Cory Booker of New Jersey, and Republican John McCain of Arizona — issued a joint resolution condemning the “horrific acts of violence” against the Rohingya and imploring Suu Kyi “to play an active role in ending this humanitarian tragedy.”

The outcry in Congress reflects the dismay and confusion among Washington supporters of Suu Kyi — a longtime democratic icon who plays the role of state counselor to the ruling National League for Democracy — who nurtured her throughout her more than 15 years under house arrest and protected her interests as her country emerged from military dictatorship to hold largely democratic elections in November 2015.

On Thursday, Suu Kyi told reporters in Myanmar that it is “a little unreasonable” to expect her government to have resolved the Rohingya crisis in the 18 months her party has been in power.

She emphasized that she is focused on speeding up development and economic opportunity to help alleviate some of the tensions.