“If you’re feeling helpless, help someone.”
— Aung San Suu Kyi
“The only real prison is fear, and the only real freedom is freedom from fear.”
“People ask me about what sacrifices I’ve made. I always answer: I’ve made no sacrifices, I’ve made choices.”
“Fear is a habit; I am not afraid.”
“It is not a sacrifice, it’s a choice. If you choose to do something, then you shouldn’t say it’s a sacrifice, because nobody forced you to do it.”
“There is a time to be quiet and a time to talk.”
“The education and empowerment of women throughout the world cannot fail to result in a more caring, tolerant, just and peaceful life for all.”
“You should never let your fears prevent you from doing what you know is right.”
“We must all work together if we are all to live together in unity and harmony.”
“Freedom and democracy are dreams you never give up.”
“Democracy, like liberty, justice and other social and political rights, is not “given”, it is earned through courage, resolution and sacrifice.”
“Kindness can change the lives of people.”
“To be kind is to respond with sensitivity and human warmth to the hopes and needs of others. Even the briefest touch of kindness can lighten a heavy heart. Kindness can change the lives of people.”
“Challenges mean opportunities as well.”
“To be forgotten, is to die a little.”
“I’m feeling a little delicate.”
“I do protect human rights, and I hope I shall always be looked up as a champion of human rights.”
“Fundamental violations of human rights always lead to people feeling less and less human.”
“Every kindness I received, small or big, convinced me that there could never be enough of it in the world. Kindness, can change the lives of people.”
“It is his capacity for self-improvement and self-redemption which most distinguishes man from the mere brute.”
“The democracy process provides for political and social change without violence.”
“It is not power that corrupts but fear.”
“We will surely get to our destination if we join hands.”
“Humor is one of the best ingredients of survival.”
“Absolute peace in our world is an unattainable goal. But it is one towards which we must continue to journey, our eyes fixed on it as a traveller in a desert fixes his eyes on the one guiding star that will lead him to salvation.”
“Since we live in this world, we have to do our best for this world.”
“Democracy is when the people keep a government in check.”
“Every thought, every word, and every action that adds to the positive and the wholesome is a contribution to peace. Each and every one of us is capable of making such a contribution.”
“I don’t think of myself as unbreakable. Perhaps I’m just rather flexible and adaptable.”
“Agreeing to disagree is a prerogative only of those who live under a democratic system.”
“For me, ‘revolution’ simply means radical change.”
“The true measure of the justice of a system is the amount of protection it guarantees to the weakest.”
“It would be difficult to dispel ignorance unless there is freedom to pursue the truth unfettered by fear.”
“The peace of our world is indivisible. As long as negative forces are getting the better of positive forces anywhere, we are all at risk.”
“By helping others, you will learn how to help yourselves.”
“There is no intrinsic virtue to law and order unless “law” is equated with justice and “order” with the discipline of a people satisfied that justice has been done.”
“It is not power that corrupts but fear. Fear of losing power corrupts those who wield it and fear of the scourge of power corrupts those who are subject to it.”
“To the best of my knowledge, no war was ever started by women. But it is women and children who have always suffered most in situations of conflict.”
“Government leaders are amazing. So often it seems they are the last to know what the people want.”
“We want to empower our people; we want to strengthen them; we want to provide them with the kind of qualifications that will enable them to build up their own country themselves.”
“After all it was my father who founded the Burmese army and I do have a sense of warmth towards the Burmese army.”
“You have a great many things to do when you are under house arrest. On the one hand, it is more comfortable than sitting in prison; on the other hand, you have to look after a household, which is strenuous under such circumstances.”
“I don’t want Burma to be a basket case forever.”
“If you give in to intimidation, you’ll go on being intimidated.”
“In general people feel more relaxed about participating in politics. They aren’t frightened as they used to be.”
“To view the opposition as dangerous is to misunderstand the basic concepts of democracy. To oppress the opposition is to assault the very foundation of democracy.”
“My top priority is for people to understand that they have the power to change things themselves.”
“Of course I regret not having been able to spend time with my family.”
“There is nothing to be gained by being unnecessarily nasty. Violence begets violence.”
“One should mature over 20 years.”
“Freedom must be demanded and defended, by those who have been denied it and by those who are already free.”
“War is not the only arena where peace is done to death. Wherever suffering is ignored, there will be the seeds of conflict, for suffering degrades and embitters and enrages.”
“The judiciary must be strengthened and released from political interference.”
“That’s not how politics works – sometimes things move in a rather imperceptible way. There are no fireworks, and then comes a time when change comes unexpectedly. Sometimes change comes with a lot of fireworks, but not always.”
“War is not the only arena where peace is done to death.”
“Even one voice can be heard loudly all over the world in this day and age.”
“I’ve always thought that the best solution for those who feel helpless is for them to help others.”
“We achieve everything by our efforts alone. Our fate is not decided by an almighty God. We decide our own fate by our actions. You have to gain mystery over yourself. It is not a matter of sitting back and accepting.”
“I think one must take responsibility for one’s actions and one’s decisions. But one should never take – one should never assume that everything that happens for the good is achieved by one’s self alone.”
“If I advocate cautious optimism it is not because I do not have faith in the future but because I do not want to encourage blind faith.”
“If you want to bring an end to long-standing conflict, you have to be prepared to compromise.”
“Some of the most relaxing weekends I have ever enjoyed were those I spent quietly with a sense of all work to date completed, and an absorbing mystery.”
“The root of a nation’s misfortunes has to be sought in the moral failings of the government.”
“I wish people wouldn’t think of me as a saint – unless they agree with the definition of a saint that a saint’s a sinner who goes on trying.”
“The best way to help Burma is to empower the people of Burma, to help us have enough self-confidence to obtain what we want for ourselves.”
“Fearlessness may be a gift, but perhaps most precious is courage from cultivating the habit of refusing to let fear dictate one’s actions.”
“I don’t think you can work on feelings in politics, apart from anything else, political change can come very unexpectedly, sometimes overnight when you least expect it.”
“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.”
“A most insidious form of fear is that which masquerades as common sense or even wisdom, condemning as foolish, reckless, insignificant or futile the small, daily acts of courage which help to preserve man’s self-respect and inherent human dignity.”
“I was heartened that people everywhere want certain basic freedoms, even if they live in a totally different cultural environment.”
“I was a prisoner, but I always felt free because I was not frightened So for me real freedom is freedom from fear.”
“It is part of the unceasing human endeavor to prove that the spirit of man can transcend the flaws of his own nature.”
“I feel that the BBC World Service is not as versatile as it used to be – or perhaps I’m not listening at the right times.”
“I’ve always tried to explain democracy is not perfect. But it gives you a chance to shape your own destiny.”
“You may not think about politics, but politics think about you.”
“I was a bit of a coward when I was small. I was terribly frightened of the dark.”
“When you decide to follow a certain path, you should follow it to the end and not be diverted from it for personal reasons.”
“In a system which denies the existence of basic human rights, fear tends to be the order of the day. The only real prison is fear, and the only real freedom is freedom from fear. Never let fear prevent you from doing right.”
“We have to choose between dialogue and utter devastation.”
“At this age, I should be leading a quiet life.”
“Fear is not the natural state of civilized people.”
“Peace, development, and justice are all connected to each other. We cannot talk about economic development without talking about peace. How can we expect economic development in a battlefield?”
“In politics, you also have to be cautiously optimistic.”
“I think that freedom is sometimes a state of mind. Sometimes, mind you, but not always.”
“There is a special charm to journeys undertaken before daybreak in hot lands: the air is soft and cool and the coming of dawn reveals a landscape fresh from the night dew.”
“I think I should be active politically. Because I look upon myself as a politician. That’s not a dirty work you know. Some people think that there are something wrong with politicians. Of course, something wrong with some politicians.”
“I think it’s time for the Army to understand that power should be enshrined in the people if we are to be a genuine democracy and not in any particular institution or organisation.”
“I worry that even those who want to reform are not quite sure how to go about it. There is so much to be done.”
“Every government must consider the security of the country. That is just part of the responsibilities of any government. But true security can only come out of unity within a country where there are so many ethnic nationalities.”
“My attitude is, do as much as I can while I’m free. And if I’m arrested I’ll still do as much as I can.”
“Peace as a goal is an ideal which will not be contested by any government or nation, not even the most belligerent.”
“I think I was the healthiest prisoner of conscience in the world.”
“I’m not the only one working for democracy in Burma – there are so many people who have worked for it because they believe that this is the only way we can maintain the dignity of our people.”
“Democracy acknowledges the right to differ as well as the duty to settle differences peacefully. Authoritarian governments see criticism of their actions and doctrines as a challenge to combat.”
“The Nobel Peace Prize opened up a door in my heart.”
“Please use your freedom to promote ours.”
“Frankly, if you do politics, you should not be thinking about your dignity.”
“The history of the world shows that peoples and societies do not have to pass through a fixed series of stages in the course of development.”
“We’re nowhere near democracy. I’ve been released, that’s all.”
“All military regimes use security as the reason why they should remain in power. It’s nothing original.”
We're on a mission of turning inspiring quotes into beautiful wallpapers. Start your week with a motivational kick. Don't miss out on our next weekly batch.
Join 48,000+ other people and subscribe to Quotefancy Weekly Digest.
