Aung San Suu Kyi is Burma's opposition heroine, seen here aged two, with her parents and two elder brothers in 1947.
As the daughter of General Aung San who led Burma to independence, her homeland was never far from her thoughts.
After a period of time overseas she returned to Burma in 1988, and was soon put under house arrest at her lakeside residence.
It was six years before she was released from this first stint in detention.
But Aung San Suu Kyi continued to suffer restrictions to her movement out of the capital and in 2000 she was again arrested.
She was released unconditionally in May 2002, but just over a year later she was put in prison following a clash between her supporters and a government-backed mob.
An apparent power struggle which saw hardliner Soe Win become prime minister in October 2004 further dimmed hopes of Aung San Suu Kyi's quick release.
But hopes were then raised by the junta's agreement to a meeting between senior UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari and Aung San Suu Kyi in May 2006.
During anti-government protests led by Buddhist monks in 2007, Ms Suu Kyi made her first public appearance since 2003, greeting monks outside her house and praying with them.
For the Burmese people, Aung San Suu Kyi represents their best and perhaps sole hope that one day there will be an end to the country's military repression.
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