Critics of Mrs Suu Kyi also say that her repeated calls for dialogue with the regime have fallen on deaf ears because she has no stick with which to force her adversaries to come to the negotiating table. Some dissidents say that Mrs Suu Kyi does not possess the qualities that made her father, independence hero Gen Aung San, so effective in his struggle against the British. Many feel that she is not decisive enough and that she lacks the political astuteness that is needed to defeat the generals. After 22 years of non-violent struggle under Mrs Suu Kyi’s leadership, Burmese are increasingly inclined to believe that the transition to genuine democracy will be a bloody one.

– Extracted from “Will the general finally let The Lady go?”, Bangkok Post, 6 October 2010.