People ask me about what sacrifices I've made. I always answer: I've made no sacrifices, I've made choices.
Aung San Suu KyiRead
I don't want to be president, but I want to be free to decide whether or not I want to be president of this country.
Interpretation
The quote expresses a desire for personal freedom in decision-making, rather than the title of a position.
Aung San Suu Kyi's quote highlights the importance of individual freedom, particularly the freedom to make choices for oneself. It reflects a deep understanding that true autonomy lies not in holding power itself, but in having the liberty to decide one's own path, including whether to pursue leadership roles. This sentiment resonates with the struggle for democracy and personal agency against oppressive forces.
In practice
This quote would be perfect for a speech on the importance of personal liberty in democracy.
People ask me about what sacrifices I've made. I always answer: I've made no sacrifices, I've made choices.
The struggle for democracy and human rights in Burma is a struggle for life and dignity. It is a struggle that encompasses our political, social and economic aspirations.
This was the way I was brought up to think of politics, that politics was to do with ethics, it was to do with responsibility, it was to do with service, so I think I was conditioned to think like that, and I'm too old to change now.
My top priority is for people to understand that they have the power to change things themselves.
If you want to bring an end to long-standing conflict, you have to be prepared to compromise.
Where there is no justice there can be no secure peace.
Freedom is never dear at any price. It is the breath of life. What would a man not pay for living?
As a boy, the very words 'Liberty Bell' and 'Independence Hall' fired my imagination and made a profound and lasting impression on my mind. Throughout my struggle to secure national freedom for China, I have continuously dreamed of the day when she would assume the full stature of an independent, democratic nation.
Nothing is more certainly written in the book of fate than that these people are to be free.
The wretch who lives without freedom feels like dressing in the mud from the streets Those who have you, o Liberty, do not know. you. Those who do not have you should not speak of you, but win you.
Freedom is neither guaranteed nor automatic; not even in the United States. Left unguarded, it can slip away like a thief in the night.
There is no force that can put an end to the human quest for freedom, and China will, in the end, become a nation ruled by law, where human rights reign supreme.
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