Myanmar’s Suu Kyi sounded ‘fairly healthy’, son says after first call in years

YANGON – The son of Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi said she sounded “fairly healthy”, after speaking to the detained ex-democratic leader on Oct 22 for the first time in more than five years.

The 81-year-old is under house arrest in the capital, Naypyitaw, according to the Myanmar authorities, where she has been sequestered since being unseated in a 2021 military coup.

“She was sounding fairly healthy,” Kim Aris told AFP after the telephone conversation.

“She was able to say she was in good health, but being 81, things aren’t getting any better,” he said.

“Essentially we just discussed family matters,” Aris said, adding: “We knew the phone call would be recorded, so we didn’t talk about anything sensitive.”

News of the conversation between Suu Kyi and Aris was the second rare update on her this week, after the Myanmar authorities on Oct 19 published pictures of her receiving a package sent by Britain’s King Charles III.

“Today, I was finally able to speak with my mother, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, after more than five years. Hearing her voice again means more than words can express,” said Aris, who lives in Britain, on Facebook.

Myanmar’s presidential spokeswoman released photographs of Suu Kyi and him speaking into telephones, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate sitting under a calendar marked with Thursday’s date.

A statement said the pair had a “consular telephone conversation” for 20 minutes starting at 2.30pm local time, and that Aris had taken the call from Myanmar’s embassy in London.

“She was most concerned about my health and the rest of the family: that was her first question, if I was well,” he told AFP.

“I remain very concerned about her well-being.”

His Facebook post said: “I am deeply grateful to everyone who has stood by my mother and me. I believe your voices helped make this moment possible.

“But my mother is 81 and remains unjustly detained. One conversation is not regular family access.”

‘Extract concessions’

Myanmar’s military held Suu Kyi in almost total seclusion for five years following the February 2021 coup, which ended a tentative decade-long experiment with democracy.

But in recent months, the authorities have increasingly advertised the loosening of her detention and published photographs of her taking private meetings, as supporters have demanded “proof of life” of the octogenarian.

Analysts say Myanmar leader Min Aung Hlaing – who, as military chief, ousted Suu Kyi in February 2021 – is seeking international legitimacy after being installed as the country’s civilian president in April.

Despite criticism from democracy watchdogs that the election putting him in office was a charade, Min Aung Hlaing has made significant headway shaking off his post-coup pariah status.

He has been invited on numerous diplomatic trips to nations from ASEAN – where Suu Kyi’s status has long been a sticking point.

Morgan Michaels, research fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, told AFP that the authorities were “using” Suu Kyi “to extract concessions from members of the international community”.

“But many within ASEAN and beyond want to see her release,” he said. “These types of gestures are likely to be very well received even if they are insincere or tactical in nature.”

One Yangon office worker, speaking anonymously for security reasons, said she still feared for Suu Kyi.

“She is getting older, and I just hope she can be free, healthy and with her family,” said the 30-year-old. “But these new contacts give me some hope.”

Books about soil

The coup ousting Suu Kyi also triggered a civil war in Myanmar, where she won the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize for her non-violent campaign for democracy.

Analysts have said reintroducing the pacifist Suu Kyi into politics may be a canny way to peel off support for pro-democracy rebels, who rose up to challenge the military after the putsch.

A former senior member of Suu Kyi’s now-dissolved National League for Democracy party said she is “not a hardliner” and would likely engage with Min Aung Hlaing if released.

“We have only one way and that is dialogue,” they said on condition of anonymity for security reasons. “For the sake of the people and the country, they have to meet.”

The Myanmar authorities said Suu Kyi was moved from a prison in Naypyitaw to house arrest in April, and in August they published images of her meeting the nation’s Red Cross representative.

On Oct 19, the authorities in Myanmar said she received a package from King Charles, including two books about soil and a “sealed diplomatic communication” from the monarch.

Buckingham Palace declined to comment on the announcement about the package.

Activist group Burma Campaign UK on Oct 22 accused the British government of “incrementally softening its approach towards the Burmese military regime”.

It said the delivery of books to Suu Kyi via the Myanmar authorities had handed a “propaganda opportunity to the Burmese military”. AFP