City of London revokes honour granted to Suu Kyi

LONDON: The City of London Corporation revoked an honour granted to Aung San Suu Kyi over the treatment of minority Rohinghya Muslims in Myanmar.

Elected representatives on the body that runs London’s historic centre and financial district voted to revoke the freedom of the city granted to Suu Kyi three years ago.

The move followed her appearance, as Myanmar’s civilian leader, at The International Court of Justice in The Hague to personally defend her country against allegations of rape, arson and mass killings against Rohinghya victims.

“Today’s unprecedented decision reflects the City Corporation’s condemnation of the humanitarian abuses carried out in Myanmar,” said David Wootton, chair of the committee that deals with Honorary Freedoms.

“The argument for the removal of the award had been much strengthened by Aung San Suu Kyi’s close association with Myanmar’s government at the (Hague) hearing, as well as her lack of response” to the committee’s letters.

Suu Kyi was originally awarded the honour, which dates back to 1237, in May 2017 in recognition of her “non-violent struggle over many years for democracy and her steadfast dedication to create a society where people can live in peace, security and freedom.”

She attended the award ceremony herself, during a tour of Europe, but faced protests even then at the plight of the Rohingya.

Previous recipients of the honour include Britain’s wartime leader Winston Churchill, anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela and scientist Stephen Hawking.

In an unrelated development, Bangladesh’s women minister said that country needs more women in the workforce if it is to grow, urging them to train for a trade and pledging to tackle high levels of sexual violence that make it harder for them to go out to work.

Fazilatun Nessa said much of Bangladesh’s recent economic growth was down to the increased contribution of women, particularly in the garment manufacturing sector, the world’s second largest after China.

Factory work has transformed the lives of millions of women in the poor, socially conservative country, allowing them to earn their own money and gain their independence.

“If you want to further develop as a country, you cannot leave Bangladesh’s women behind,” Nessa, 64, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in Dhaka ahead of International Women’s Day on Sunday.

“It is not possible. You need more and more women to join the workforce.”