Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi attending an opening ceremony of centenary commemoration of Yangon University in Yangon. She is also preparing to travel to the Netherlands to fight charges of genocide against her country at the International Court of Justice. - AP
Several hundred people gathered in downtown Yangon for the third in a series of rallies organised by supporters since the announcement was made that she would personally fight the charges. More than 730,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled to neighbouring Bangladesh since a 2017 crackdown by Myanmar’s military, which U.N. investigators say was carried out with"genocidal intent".
Suu Kyi’s office said she would fly to The Hague for the first hearings, from Dec. 10, to"defend the national interest of Myanmar". Though the rallies organised by her ardent supporters have been modest in size, there are other signs that Suu Kyi has gathered popular support through her decision. Recent days have brought a revival of an online 'Stand with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi' campaign, with Facebook users changing their profile pictures to images of the state counselor.
Last week, her government said it was"heartening to see that people from all walks of life ... are expressing their strong support for the State Counselor and her leadership in the endeavours to contest the case at the ICJ."