FERRAGOSTO: A MOMENT FOR "THE LADY"

As this day of celebration draws to a close in Italy, I ask you, if you can, to spare a thought for one who has had no holiday and no freedom in 14 years: Burma's pro-democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, was, in a sham of a trial, convicted last week of breaching national security and sentenced to a further 18 months of house arrest. The regime, of course, knew that the eyes of the world were upon them and had this not been the case, I fear that the sentence would have been harsher, as it would have been and has been for others in Burma whom we must not forget.

This shows that we who live in freedom can make a difference and we can do so at this juncture by joining the call for a global arms embargo on Burma. Countries which have already called for this include the UK, the USA, Australia, France and Italy. Countries which have not yet done so include New Zealand, Canada and Switzerland. [This information is, as far as I can tell from several sources, correct at the time of writing; please correct me if I am wrong.] You can find out more about the arms embargo campaign here and how to get involved, wherever you are, here.

"The Lady" and the National League for Democracy are asking only for those freedoms which most of us take for granted:

"When we ask for democracy, all we are asking is that our people should be allowed to live tranquilly under the rule of law, protected by institutions which will guarantee our rights, the rights that will enable us to maintain our human dignity, to heal long festering wounds and to allow love and courage to flourish. Is that such a very unreasonable demand?"

- Aung San Suu Kyi, Letters from Burma [1996].