Aung San Suu Kyi is letting her own revolution down

SHE is the woman who faced down an army. After the military regime in Myanmar refused to recognise the colossal victory of her National League for Democracy party in an election in 1990, Aung San Suu Kyi endured 25 years of persecution, including 15 years under house arrest. In late 2015, after many failed attempts to discredit and sideline her, the generals gave up and held a relatively free election. The NLD won again, in another landslide, and this time the army allowed the result to stand. Ms Suu Kyi’s dignified resistance to military rule has made her a hero to many around the world—and deservedly so. But the self-reliance and doggedness that sustained her through that long struggle have not stood her in such good stead since the NLD took power a year ago.In a parting gift from the army, Myanmar’s constitution bars Ms Suu Kyi from the presidency on the grounds that her children hold British citizenship. She has installed a loyal lieutenant in the job instead, and awarded herself the title “state counsellor”, as well as two ministerial portfolios. Members of parliament complain that they have little role in government; Ms Suu Kyi makes all the decisions that matter (see ).