If suffering were an unavoidable part of our existence, we should try to alleviate it as far as possible in practical, earthly ways.

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

Government leaders are amazing. So often it seems they are the last to know what the people want.

I think that freedom is sometimes a state of mind. Sometimes, mind you, but not always.

When you feel helpless, help someone.

I was speaking to a writer the other day and he gave me a valuable piece of advice. He said that you may get to where you want to go quicker through violence, but the healing process takes longer. Whereas if you don't use violence, there is not much healing necessary, so you win in the long run.

There have been many claims that [U.S.] sanctions have hurt Burma economically, but I did not agree with that point of view. If you look at reports by the IMF, for example, they make quite clear that the economic impact on Burma has not been that great. But I think the political impact has been very great and that has helped us in our struggle for democracy.