Oxford, United Kingdom: A college of Oxford University where Aung San Suu Kyi studied has removed her portrait during the severe criticism from all over the world as a result of Rohingya crisis.
Suu Kyi had graduated from St Hugh’s College in 1967 and the portrait was hung on its main entrance, since 1999. Painted by artist Chen Yanning in 1997, the portrait belonged to Suu Kyi’s husband, Oxford professor Michael Aris, and was given to the college following his death.
“The college received the gift of a new painting earlier this month which will be exhibited for a period. The painting of Aung San Suu Kyi has meanwhile been moved to storage,” the college said in a statement, reports The Indian Express.
However, the exact reasons for the portrait’s removal remain unclear. The move comes just days before the start of the academic year.
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There have been speculations that the allegation of ethnic cleansing on Myanmar is the reason behind the decision.
Nearly 500,000 Rohingyas have fled to neighbouring Bangladesh, causing a major humanitarian crisis.
Suu Kyi was also awarded an honorary degree by St Hugh’s College in June 2012, which the university said it was not considering withdrawing. St Hugh’s student newsletter, ‘The Swan’ said the decision to remove the portrait was taken by the college’s governing body.
Suu Kyi read philosophy, politics and economics at Oxford between 1964 and 1967.