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President Bush Signs H.R. 4286, Congressional Gold Medal: Daw Aung San Suu Kyi

THE PRESIDENT: I just signed a bill passed by the leaders of the Senate and House who have joined me to honor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi with the Congressional Gold Medal.

This is a fitting tribute to a courageous woman who speaks for freedom for all the people of Burma, and who speaks in such a way that she’s a powerful voice in contrast to the junta that currently rules the country.

There were 65 REPUBLICAN co sponsors of the Bill to award Kyi the Congressional Gold Medal.

Q Mrs. Bush, why such an historic interest? This is a first, for a First Lady to come to this podium and talk about a cyclone. Why such a historic interest?

MRS. BUSH: Well, you know I’ve been interested in Burma for a long time. It started really with an interest in Aung San Suu Kyi and reading her works and just the story of a Nobel Prize winner who’s been under house arrest for so long, whose party was overwhelmingly elected in an election and then never able to take office. And so it started with an interest in her, and then just the more I’ve seen, the more critical I see the need is for the people in Burma to be – for the world to pay attention to the people of Burma, and for the world to put pressure on the military regime.

Former U.S. first lady Laura Bush (R) shakes hands with Burmese opposition politician Aung San Suu Kyi (3rd R) as House Minority Leader Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) (L) applauds during a U.S. Congressional Gold Medal presentation ceremony at the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol September 19, 2012 in Washington, DC. Aung San Suu Kyi was presented with the medal for her leadership and commitment to human rights and for promoting freedom, peace and democracy in Myanmar, also known as Burma.