Aung San Suu Kyi reports good health after five years of isolation

Aung San Suu Kyi is in good physical and mental health, according to her son Kim Aris, who spoke with her on a phone call Thursday. The 81-year-old former leader has not had visitors for more than five years. Aris described the period as near-solitary confinement.

Aris made the call from the Myanmar embassy in London. He said the military permitted the conversation as part of a public relations effort. He does not believe anyone other than military or police personnel is present at his mother's location. He described the setting as a fenced-off residence in Naypyidaw with scrubby land around it.

Aung San Suu Kyi was deposed in a 2021 military coup. Since then, she has been held at an unspecified location in the capital. She faces charges that Aris called trumped-up and politically motivated. He said she should be free.

The military regime has recently released images of Aung San Suu Kyi. Last week, a government spokesperson showed her smiling in a wood-paneled room. Officials handed her two gardening books given by Britain's King Charles. A paper calendar on the wall displayed the date. Aris called these photo opportunities familiar stunts used to suggest fair treatment.

Aris noted that his mother is not allowed access to newspapers, radio, or television. He said she remains completely shut off from the rest of the world. Activists have long demanded proof of life for her and other political prisoners. A Red Cross visited her in August, and she was photographed during that encounter.

The 2021 takeover triggered a civil war that conflict monitors say has killed more than 100,000 people. Former junta chief Min Aung Hlaing has sought to rebuild diplomatic ties abroad. In April, he swapped military fatigues for civilian clothes after elections that many observers condemned as a sham.

Aris said global support for his mother has dwindled since the 2016 and 2017 Rohingya crisis. He noted that Myanmar began a domestic inquiry and appointed former UN chief Kofi Annan to lead a commission during her leadership. He said the military worked to undermine her position while she served as state counsellor.

Aris said the country now suffers from a lack of international attention. He argued that people ignoring what is happening in Burma should not be blamed solely on the handling of the Rohingya crisis. The phone call marks the first known direct contact between Aris and his mother in over five years.