The Papilionanda Aung San Suu Kyi has been unveiled in the Singapore Botanic Gardens, where the orchid hybrid was named in honour of Myanmar’s State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi.
Ms Suu Kyi has visited the National Orchid Garden to receive the honor in the morning of 1 December, accompanied by Foreign Mininster Vivian Balakrishnan, during her three-day official call to Singapore.
The Papilionanda Aung San Suu Kyi is a hybrid of the Papilionanda Josephine van Brero and the Vanda Varut Fuchsia.
This is a ‘robust and free flowering hybrid’, a factsheet from National Parks Board (NParks) explained the honor flower.
Each of its blossoms has a prominent waxy-reddish purple lip, measuring about 9cm across, and the sepals and petals are a delightful pastel bluish purple adorned with fine purple spots and tessellations, Nparks stated.
But while she visited the island state, the Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi stood accused of failing to offer protection to Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslims, from what the rights groups say as systematic campaign of abuse by the army.
The democracy icon, called as a moral force during Myanmar’s junta years by the international community, has remained near-silent despite mounting evidences of army abuses in Rakhine State.
With a whole lot of Muslims fleeing to neighbouring Bangladesh, the United Nations has talked recent security operations amounted to ‘ethnic cleansing’ of the Muslim Rohingya minority.
AP has written that her failure to support of the Rohingya ‘is baffling to an international target audience that persists in casting her as a human rights icon,’ as mentioned by David Mathieson of Human Rights Watch.
Mr Mathieson said, “One version to explain her silence is callous indifference, another is calculated limited messaging, but the most likely is she simply has no control over the Burmese army.”
Even though she led her party to power, Ms Suu Kyi is obstructed by a junta-era constitution that gives the army a quarter of parliamentary seats and control over security.
Thousands of Rohingya have fled the army containment in Rakhine to Bangladesh, telling horrifying stories of gang rape, torture, and murder at the hands of Myanmar’s military.
Rights Groups said the military information of attacks on police border posts last month was only an excuse for a crackdown on the Rohingya, but the government totally denied the allegations, explaining the troops are defending the country from an armed uprising.
MS Suu Kyi, who was in visits to India and Japan when the six-week crisis happened, has only commented that an investigation into the attacks was being held in accordance with the law.
Many netizens posted their comments about Ms Suu Kyi and her Singapore visit on the web, some comments from Facebook are negative but some are positive, as quoted below.
- Peter Cheong : Just look at the serious Rohingyas problems now in her country. Yet, she can be in Singapore smiling happily. Singapore should not be bothered with her visit…preposterous !!!!
- Amir Khan : Why so much of honor for a person who has taken no action on the most prominent human rights violation in the world. I respected her because she was pursuing a movement of democracy in her country. She had a firm belief in Buddhist teachings and adopted methods of non violence. I am so disheartened to learn that being in power, she continues to allow the atrocities in her country. I dont know how some Burmese people are also justifying the hostile actions. I no longer have any respect for her nor her fellow countrymen who have no empathy towards the Rohingya people.
- Mikha Maric : She gets Orchid while Rohingya were slaughtered , at least China is better, they killed dogs but not human.
- Khairullah Bin Osman : Want to follow like SG? Then follow the SG harmony way between race and religion…. Go and settle your country genocide problem and ‘ethnic cleansing’ and then talk about how to be like SG…
- Jan Rafizan Nasmi : This post got nothing to do with Rohingyas or anyone.. so please la, for the sake of humanity, others and Burmese people need to shut their mouth up on bringing up the topic. Posting hatred does not help the situations and furthermore, Burmese people keep on posting about Rohingyas are pure disgusting shows you people do approve about the ‘ethnic cleansing’.
- Aye Melody : Behind every successful woman , there’s a pack of HATERS who obviously jealous on her succees. So, let the haters hate till their last breath . We gonna thanks to those haters as they helped our great Iron Lady (Auntie Su) to get stronger and more & more successful . You, haters, try till your next life to pull her down , ok!
- Aim Ibrahim : So much anger from our Sg people, relax lah its a political issue. For Myanmar that work in sg, thank you so much to bring up our country. Should have done that in your own. But still sg still happy for you to serve us.
There were some comments from Myanmar residents in Singapore on the matter as well:
- Han Radi Hello, everyone who concern about Rohingya, I am very impressed with your kindness and hope for humanity. I do believe that you will feel the same kindness and humanity to others too. If you want to find out the truth regards to those topics, I am willing to welcome (you) to our country and explore to truth with your own self without any effects from medias or local news. But of course, do not criticise my home without knowing the facts. Thanks.
- Htun Htun Naing Dear CNA and Singapore Government, why your Muslims people living in Singapore so ridiculous about Bengali so called Rohingya.. in this page? I understand Singapore doesn’t allow racist, do you?
