Letter from Burma: An old soldier By Aung San Suu Kyi
Women walk near the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon. (Mainichi)
It is always sad when a good life comes to an end. At the same time the knowledge that a human being has completed his sojourn on this earth with due honor is a matter for gratitude and a sense of wonder. When U Lwin, one of the founding members of the NLD, died on Dec. 6 I saw it as the fading away of an old soldier. I found my own attitude curious.
Fifteen years ago, I wrote about U Lwin in one of my Letters from Burma and outlined his career in the military, which included a wartime training course at the Rikugun Shikan Gakko in Japan. I also wrote that he subsequently served as Minister of Planning and Finance, Deputy Prime Minister and State Council member in the Burma Socialist Programme Party administration until he resigned from the last position in 1980.
From 1988 onwards he was a member of the Central Executive Committee of the NLD and it was his meticulous discharge of the office of treasurer that carried the party unblemished through eight rigorous and somewhat unfriendly examinations of its books by the Bureau of Special Investigation. Altogether he served his country as a military man for 19 years and in a civilian capacity for more than twice that length of time. Yet at the conclusion of his life I find myself thinking of him as an old soldier.
Military training has left an unmistakable stamp on some of the older members of the NLD executive committee. To begin, appropriately, at the top, their hair is immaculate, slicked down frequently with a little comb that would materialize out of some pocket or other. Then there is the erect bearing and the precision of movement that speak of endless hours of drill. They also have a tendency to wash and mend their own clothes instead of leaving such chores to the womenfolk as is normal in our society. The best of our old soldiers have a certain sweetness of demeanor which I imagine must be a leftover from the hard days during the war when they had to rely on the affection and generosity of the people for their small comforts and, at times, for their very safety.
When I first met U Lwin I saw him mainly as a conscientious CEC member who spoke little at meetings beyond what related to his duties as treasurer. It was only in 1995 after my release from the first stint of house arrest that I came to know him well. 'Lwin' is a very common name in Burma and to distinguish him from other Lwins in the army he was often referred to as 'U Lwin the handsome' or 'U Lwin the matinee idol.' (I learnt very recently that he was also known to his soldiers as 'bread' because his rounded cheeks took on the semblance of bread loaves when puffed out and wobbling while he played football.) His good looks were evident even in his old age but what struck me about him was the pouting expression that made him look like a sulky baby. This belied his benign nature and camouflaged an engaging wit. When Madelaine Albright, then U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, visited Burma we arranged a breakfast meeting at my house for her and her entourage. U Lwin shared a table with some members of the State Department, one of whom expressed the anxiety then felt in some circles that perhaps I was subject to the control of 'military elements' within the NLD. This was a reference to the four ex-army members of the CEC with whom I worked closely.
"Ma'am," retorted U Lwin in the very polite American army officer manner he had acquired during his stint as military attache in Washington, "How could the four of us do what the four hundred thousand strong Burmese army has been unable to do?"
U Lwin had run away from home to join the Burma Independence Army as soon as he finished high school and he was very humble in acknowledging his lack of higher education. When he was appointed Minister of Finance he frankly told his civil service subordinates that his academic credentials were non-existent and that they would have to teach him a lot. It was this willingness to learn that made U Lwin one of the best ministers in the BSPP government and provided him with an admirable grasp of a wide range of subjects. It was as much a delight to hear him talk about audio systems, horticulture and meditation as to listen to his reminiscences about his days in the fledgling Burmese army.
The soldier in him kept U Lwin unswervingly true to what U Tin U, another of the 'military elements' in the NLD, would refer to as my "commander" status. This was particularly touching in view of the fatherly warmth with which he treated me while upholding an awareness of what he considered to be my official position. When I went to see him at his home a couple of months ago his health was already failing although it was not then obvious that there was such a short span of life left to him. Speaking very slowly, he thanked me formally for having taken the trouble to come to see him despite my "heavy responsibilities." Then when I made my obeisance to him, he blessed me with a gravity that infused each word with deep meaning and sincerity.
U Lwin's passing was gentle. He faded away with great dignity as befitted an old soldier. (By Aung San Suu Kyi)
(Mainichi Japan) December 24, 2011
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