The doctor behind the lady

Aung San Suu Kyi's long-time doctor calls the shots behind the scenes on whether the democracy icon should travel

Bangkokpost, April 1st, 2012:   Aung San Suu Kyi has defied Myanmar's generals for decades. But there's one man whose orders she usually follows: Tin Myo Win, her doctor.

A VERY SPECIAL GUEST: Aung San Suu Kyi speaks at the wedding of her doctor Tin Myo Win

Behind the scenes, Tin Myo Win has played a key role in the National League for Democracy's (NLD) first election campaign in 22 years, checking party leader Mrs Suu Kyi's health every Monday and Thursday and advising on whether she should travel.
Last week, he urged her not to travel after she fell ill while campaigning in Myeik in southern Myanmar.

"The problem is the workload," Tin Myo Win said. "She can't rest enough. It's partly because of her age and also because of the weather."

Mrs Suu Kyi, 66, has fallen ill twice on the campaign trail, most recently vomiting and suffering low blood pressure. Temperatures have regularly reached 38C in many parts of Myanmar.
In 2003, while under house arrest, Mrs Suu Kyi had major surgery, Tin Myo Win said, but he declined to give details, citing patient confidentiality.

Despite new fears for her health, Tin Myo Win couldn't stop Mrs Suu Kyi from taking one last-minute campaign trip on the eve of Myanmar's historic by-election today. She left Yangon at 4pm yesterday for the three-hour drive to Kawhmu Township, where she is running against two opponents.

"Even if she feels exhausted, she didn't express any pain," her doctor said in a rare interview on Friday between operations at the Muslim Free Hospital in Yangon.

NLD sources said Tin Myo Win advised against travelling this weekend, but Mrs Suu Kyi refused to stay put.

She was scheduled to spend the night in a village in Kawhmu and tour some voting stations early this morning. She was planning to return to Yangon before noon.

Myanmar is holding its first election since 2010, when the pro-military Union Solidarity and Development Party won an overwhelming victory in what was seen as a widely rigged poll. The NLD boycotted, but decided to take part this time after Mrs Suu Kyi became convinced the new civilian government was sincere in making reforms. Across the country, 45 seats are up for grabs.

Tin Myo Win, 61, and his wife are the only ones who regularly visited Mrs Suu Kyi during her years of house arrest, and got to know her well.

"She is brilliant in maintaining her weight at 106 pounds [48kg]," he said.

He said he has been pushing Mrs Suu Kyi to eat more meat for a balanced diet. She avoids animals with four legs. "Just chicken and fish _ I asked her to eat more fish because she likes seafood. She eats only the white parts of the egg," he said.

Tin Myo Win earned his medical degree in 1975 from the Institute of Medicine in Yangon and later became a surgeon. His specialty is gastrointestinal disorders. He was also once a politician.

He first met Mrs Suu Kyi in September 1988 and his long-time friendship with the democracy icon was evident in February, when Tin Myo Win married Pyone Mo Ei. Mrs Suu Kyi paid for the lavish wedding at the five-star Trader's Hotel.

Tin Myo Win cares for many other activists, politicians and former political prisoners, but he said Mrs Suu Kyi stands out. "She is the best patient," Tin Myo Win said. "No one can endure pain like her."

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/local/286902/the-doctor-behind-the-lady