After nearly 6 years, ex-Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi's son hears her voice
Aung San Suu Kyi, the former leader of Myanmar, has spoken to her son for the first time in nearly six years while in detention. The call provides a rare update on her condition following her imprisonment by the military junta in 2021.
Why it matters
The status of Aung San Suu Kyi remains a focal point for international human rights advocacy regarding the ongoing civil war and political instability in Myanmar.
CHIANG MAI, Thailand— After nearly six years in detention, Aung San Suu Kyi's first words to her son were a question about his health.
"And then I said all the family was sending their love and asked after her health," said Kim Aris, who spoke by phone with his 81-year-old mother on Thursday, their first direct conversation since the 2021 military coup toppled the democratically elected Myanmar government she led.
The 20-minute call, which Aris, who lives in London, believes the military monitored, offered a rare glimpse of how the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize laureate is being held. She was first sentenced in 2021, with consecutive trials through 2022 bringing her total sentence to 33 years on corruption and electoral fraud charges, widely condemned by the U.S., Western countries, and human rights groups as fabricated. The sentence was later reduced, leaving her with 18 years still to serve.
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