Trinity has deleted a tweet celebrating the visit of Aung San Suu Kyi in 2012 after a flurry of online criticism.
The tweet, sent this morning from the official Trinity College Dublin account, said: “#OnThisDay in 2012, Aung San Suu Kyi, one of the most renowned women democrats in the world and @NobelPrize winner received an Honorary Degree. Ms Kyi inspires an awareness of the primacy of democratic government in people, campaigning for freedom and democracy in Burma and the world.”
The tweet included a photo of Provost Patrick Prendergast standing beside Aung San Suu Kyi after she received her award at a special ceremony in the Bord Gais Energy Theatre.
Aung San Suu Kyi, the de facto leader of Myanmar and once feted around the world as a defender of human rights, has been accused of turning a blind eye to the persecution of Myanmar’s minority Muslim Rohingya population by the country’s military, which some have likened to genocide.
She received the honour from Trinity before she came to power, following her release from house arrest.
The UN has called the Rohingya population “the world’s most persecuted minority”. Last year, the Guardian reported that Myanmar had blocked all UN aid agencies from sending supplies of food, water and medicine to Rohingya civilians at the heart of the conflict.
Aung San Suu Kyi’s response to the treatment of the Rohingya population has been labelled “inflammatory propaganda” and there have been calls to strip her of her Nobel Prize. Around the world, organisations and groups have rescinded awards and honours following international outcry at the persecution against the Rohingya people by the Myanmar leadership.
Aung San Suu Kyi came to power after being freed from house arrest in 2010. For years, as the country blocked her from running for office, she was hailed around the world as an icon for democracy and peace.
