YANGON—Burma’s de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi called on Sunday for her people to remain united, saying the Southeast Asian country faces “challenges” at home and abroad, as she marked two years since her party swept to power in a historic vote.
In the televised address, Suu Kyi urged people to be united. “The world’s focus in on Rakhine right now, but we also need to peacefully develop the country.”
“We are facing challenges from inside and outside of the country, as we are struggling to develop politics, society and economy,” she said.
The civilian government led by Suu Kyi has no control over the military, which launched the crackdown in Rakhine in response to insurgent attacks on security forces in August.
The United States and United Nations have described the operation as ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya, which Burma denies.
Suu Kyi also talked about her number one priority - to end decades of fighting between ethnic rebels and the military, which has kept Burma in a state of near-perpetual civil war since independence in 1948.
“While building peace and stability is the most important requirement for our country, we need the strength of unity,” she said.
Two ethnic armed groups in Burma signed a ceasefire with the government in February as Suu Kyi sought to revive the stuttering peace process. The Buddhist-majority country has seen the worst fighting with rebels in years since she took office.
Burma on Friday swore in a close ally of Suu Kyi as the country’s new president after the outgoing president retired. Analysts said the move was unlikely to affect a delicate balance of power between Suu Kyi and the military.
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