Myanmar leader hears from son after five years of silence

Aung San Suu Kyi, the 81-year-old former leader of Myanmar, has not spoken to her family for five years. On Thursday, her son Kim Aris finally heard her voice after a phone call arranged by the Myanmar embassy in London. The conversation ended a long period of silence during which the military government controlled all public information about the detained Nobel laureate.

Aris described his mother as physically strong and mentally sharp. He stated that she sounded "certainly all there mentally" and "strong" physically. However, he reported that she is living in near-complete isolation. Aris believes she is held in a fenced-off residence in Naypyidaw, the capital, with scrubby land surrounding the building. He said he does not think she has anyone around her except military or police personnel, which amounts to solitary confinement.

The military permitted the call on Thursday. Aris welcomed the contact but characterized the invitation as part of a public relations campaign led by junta chief Min Aung Hlaing. Hlaing has recently sought to rebuild diplomatic ties abroad. In April, he switched from military fatigues to civilian clothes following elections that many observers criticized as a sham.

The government has recently released images of Suu Kyi to show she is being treated well. Last week, officials showed her smiling in a wood-paneled room while they handed her two gardening books from Britain's King Charles. A calendar on the wall behind her confirmed the date. In August, the Red Cross also visited her. Aris called these photo opportunities familiar stunts designed to suggest fair treatment.

Aris said his mother remains cut off from the rest of the world. She is not allowed newspapers, radio, or television. He argued that she has been locked up for five years on politically motivated charges and should be free. Activists have long demanded proof of life for her and other political prisoners.

The military deposed Suu Kyi in a 2021 coup, triggering a civil war that conflict monitors say has killed more than 100,000 people. The takeover ended a brief democratic era that began after her party won the 2015 election. Her international standing took a hit after mass killings of Rohingya Muslims in 2016 and 2017. At the International Court of Justice, she acknowledged that military units might have used disproportionate force but defended her government against genocide charges.

Aris noted that global support for his mother has dwindled since the Rohingya crisis. He said the lack of international attention now affects the whole country. He argued that the world should not ignore what is happening in Burma just because of the past handling of the Rohingya situation.