Aung San Suu Kyi and senior government officials took part in Martyrs’ Day tributes this morning, with a solemn remembrance ceremony at the Martyrs’ Mausoleum in Yangon.
She knelt down in front of the monument built to house the remains of her father, independence leader Aung San, and six others who were assassinated with him during a cabinet meeting 69 years ago today.
Many observed that she seemed to be without the trademark flowers in her hair.
Hers was the last in a string of high-profile appearances. Phyo Min Thein, Yangon’s new chief minister and NLD appointee, was in an earlier group.
Yangon Chief Minister approaches a monument for martyrs in Yangon on July 19, 2016. Photo: Aung Naing Soe / Coconuts Yangon
Army chief Min Aung Hlaing came afterwards in a symbolic show of unity between the military and the new National League for Democracy-led government, which won elections in November.
It was the first time in recent memory that the commander-in-chief of the armed forces attended the annual event.
Vice-President Myint Swe and other MPs came as well but President Htin Kyaw was absent, attending an alms donation in the capital, Naypyitaw.
Senior state officials, including army chief Min Aung Hlaing (R) and VP Myint Swe (second from right) pay respects in Yangon on Martyrs Day, July 19, 2016. Photo: Aung Naing Soe/ Coconuts Yangon
Soldiers on guard at the Martyrs Mauseoleum in Yangon on July 19, 2016. Photo: Aung Naing Soe / Coconuts Yangon
Aung San, who led the struggle for Myanmar’s independence from the British, was shot dead by gunmen on July 19, 1947 at 10:37am.
To mark the exact moment of his death, drivers in Yangon honked their horns boisterously and traffic came to a standstill in the pouring rain.
At the headquarters of the National League for Democracy, Suu Kyi’s ruling party, crowds gathered for free cups of tea and to listen to televised speeches by Aung San.
The building where he was killed, the closed-off Secretariat in downtown Yangon, was opened to the public for the day for the third year in a row. Scores of soldiers patrolled the site and body scanners checked visitors.
At its peak, the line just to get inside took up to an hour.
Thousands had already visited by lunchtime, strolling through the historic former government complex, which has suffered decades of neglect.
Crowds take photos in the grounds of the Secretariat in downtown Yangon on July 19, 2016. Photo: Poppy McPherson / Coconuts Yangon
Eighteen-year-old Ei Myat Noe Lwin was among them.
“Now Mother Suu is also in the government, so we will have more opportunities like this,” she said.
