Suu Kyi meets ex-first lady Lee

Aung San Suu Kyi, left, shakes hands with former first lady Lee Hee-ho at the Kim Dae-jung Presidential Library and Museum in western Seoul, Friday. The Myanmar opposition leader and human rights activist gave thanks to Lee for her and her late husband President Kim’s support for the country’s pro-democracy movement. Yonhap

By Kim Jae-won

Myanmar’s human rights activist Aung San Suu Kyi met former first lady Lee Hee-ho Friday at the Kim Dae-jung Presidential Library & Museum in western Seoul, Friday.

Lee and the late president Kim were supporters of Suu Kyi while she was held under house arrest for leading the pro-democracy movement in the Southeast Asian country.

“My husband would have been happy to meet you if he were alive. He always wished you health and freedom,” said Lee.

Suu Kyi responded with appreciation for the late president and the support of the Korean people for democratic change in her country.

“I appreciate your actions for democracy in Burma. Thanks to your support, I could be freed from house arrest. But I am very sorry that I did not have the chance to meet President Kim,” Suu Kyi said.

Burma is the former name of Myanmar. Suu Kyi uses the old name because the military junta in the country changed the name without the agreement of its people. The late president Kim died in August 2009 at the age of 85.

The meeting was part of Suu Kyi’s schedule during her first visit to Korea to attend the opening ceremony of the 2013 Special Olympics World Winter Games held on Tuesday in PyeongChang, Gangwon Province.

Suu Kyi is chairwoman of the National League for Democracy, the main opposition party in the country.