Desmond Tutu condemns dear sister

“Silence is too high a price.” This is the message from Desmond Tutu to Aung San Suu Kyi, over the handling of Myanmar violence. In a heartfelt letter to his fellow nobel peace prize winner, he asked her to speak up in order to end the violence against her country’s Muslim minority.

“…I am now elderly, decrepit and formerly retired, but breaking my vow to remain silent on public affairs out of profound sadness about the Muslim minority in your country, the Rohingya.”  Read part of the letter.

The archbishop went on to say that the horror and the “ethnic cleansing” in the Rahkine region of the country had forced him to speak against the woman he considered “a dearly beloved younger sister.”

In the recent past, Aung San Suu Kyi has defended her government’s handling of the crisis. Despite this however, Tutu urged her to intervene.

“For years I had a photograph of you on my desk to remind me of the injustice and sacrifice you endured out of your love and commitment for Myanmar’s people. You symbolized righteousness.

Your emergence into public life allayed our concerns about violence being perpetrated against members of the Rohingya… The images we are seeing of the suffering of the Rohingya fill us with pain and dread.

My dear sister: if the political price of your ascension to the highest office in Myanmar is your silence, the price is surely too steep.

It is incongruous for a symbol of righteousness to lead such a country; it is adding to our pain.

Ass we witness the unfolding horror we pray for you to be courageous and resilient again. We pray for you to speak out for justice, human rights and the unity of your people. We pray for you to intervene in the escalating crisis and guide your people back towards the path of righteousness.”

Desmond Tutu has joined other voices in calling for Aung San Suu Kyi to do more to protect the persecuted Muslim minority.