Aung San Suu Kyi’s visit to the US made headlines all over the world this week.
The biggest news to come out of the tour, which saw Suu Kyi meet President Obama at the White House for the first time as her country’s de facto leader, was that Myanmar will no longer be under economic sanctions.
That means, among other things, that US businesses can deal with military-linked companies in the country for the first time and jade can be exported to the US.
It’s also a ‘thumbs up’ reward for Myanmar’s efforts at reform.
At home in Yangon, the trip was, of course, front-page news.
While many publications focused on the sanctions relief, and its symbolic and practical importance, more personal stories made it to the covers, too.
Here’s a brief sample:
Tomorrow News Journal focused on the reunion between Suu Kyi and her younger son, Kim, during her brief stop in the United Kingdom. Images of the joyful meeting, in London, went viral on Myanmar social media, where the politician’s many supporters paid tribute to the family’s resilience.
Suu Kyi, now 71, has barely seen Kim, 39, or his elder brother Alexander since 1988, when she left the UK for her native Myanmar in 1988 to care for her sick mother and became wrapped up in the fight for democracy.
They were able to reconnect after her house arrest was lifted in 2010 but that’s not much of a consolation prize after so many years of scant visits, which is why the photos were so emotional.
Photo: Aung Naing Soe / Coconuts Yangon
7 Day Daily ran with the historic meeting between Suu Kyi and President Obama, and his announcement that the US intends to drop all sanctions against Myanmar.
Photo: Aung Naing Soe / Coconuts Yangon
7 Day News Journal (yeah, it’s a different thing) focused on the ‘warm moment’ between Suu Kyi and her son. She also met her grandchildren in London. Whether she will see her older son Alexander on this trip is not known.
Photo: Aung Naing Soe / Coconuts Yangon
The Voice had two big stories focusing on Suu Kyi: an analysis about whether she can bring an end to the country’s long-running civil wars and the news that she has been named Harvard’s 2016 Humanitarian of the Year.
Photo: Aung Naing Soe / Coconuts Yangon
First News went big, with a special supplement and quoting Suu Kyi’s remarks in the US on their front page. She said: “The value of a person changes everyday. So there are new opportunies everday. We will reach our destination by using these new opportunities.”
Photo: Aung Naing Soe / Coconuts Yangon
Daily Eleven, meanwhile, ran those photos of the friendly handshake between Suu Kyi and Obama with a story on the sanctions news.
