Suu Kyi and London School Economics

environmental concerns: Myanmar citizens, now freer to protest, have stalled a Chinese-backed dam and other projects out of environmental concerns, and China is upset about fighting between Myanmar military and rebels in the border area. "There are question marks on both sides as to where that relationship is headed," said Jurgen Haacke, a political scientist at London School of Economics. "It is useful for to play the Suu Kyi card to try and have a different approach, a different avenue to get their message across." Suu Kyi is an international democracy icon for her years-long defiance of, and imprisonment at the hands of, an authoritarian military government in Myanmar that was supported at the time by China, which still keeps fellow Nobel Peace laureate Liu Xiaobo imprisoned for his calls for democracy, according to Asahi Shimbun. However, Suu Kyi has maintained since her release in 2010 that her country must maintain friendly relations with China, and the trip demonstrates her determination to accumulate the diplomatic credentials to potentially contest Myanmar presidency no matter how it might clash with her past role. The secluded, five-day visit, which started on June 10 and includes no scheduled public appearances, gives the Beijing leadership a chance to get to know Suu Kyi at a time when her country has shifted toward Western countries, Japan and other potential investors. When asked on June 10 whether Suu Kyi visit might be an occasion for China to release Liu, convicted in 2009 of subversion and sentenced to 11 years in prison, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said no. "There no reason to backpedal on the verdict that has been made by Chinese judicial authorities according to law," Hong said. She is constitutionally barred from contesting the presidency because of a provision barring people who have been married to foreigners, but has campaigned for a change that would allow her candidacy. Suu Kyi first trip to China is a party-to-party meeting between China Communist Party and her opposition National League for Democracy, which is expected to perform strongly in elections later this year. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.