Singapore 'Dismayed' Over Suu Kyi Charges

AsiaOne ran this AFP article on 15 May 2009:

Singapore 'dismayed' over Suu Kyi charges

SINGAPORE, May 15, 2009 (AFP) - Singapore said Friday it was "dismayed" after Myanmar's ruling military lodged new charges against detained Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi and called for her release.

The city-state said this could set back fellow ASEAN member Myanmar's national reconciliation process.

"We reiterate the call for the release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi from detention. We are also concerned about recent reports on her poor health, and that the arrest may exacerbate her condition," the foreign ministry said.

"Singapore is dismayed by this latest development. This is a setback for the national reconciliation process."

The 63-year-old Nobel Peace prize winner and democracy leader is facing five years in jail for allegedly breaching the terms of her house arrest after a US man swam to her lakeside house.

She has already spent most of the past two decades confined to her home after winning 1990 elections which were never recognised by the ruling military authorities.

Singapore and Myanmar belong to the 10-state Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which has a policy of non-interference in the internal affairs of member states.

The Jakarta-based ASEAN secretariat has made no comment about Aung San Suu Kyi's impending trial, which has drawn strong international condemnation.

Myanmar last year ratified ASEAN's new charter, which seeks to set standards of human rights and democracy for member states.