BANGKOK — Kim Aris, the son of Myanmar’s detained former leader Aung San Suu Kyi, has urged the international community to demand evidence of his mother’s condition and avoid actions that could legitimize Myanmar’s military government.
Speaking in an interview with Radio Free Asia (RFA), Aris criticized reports suggesting that his mother had been moved from prison to house arrest, saying authorities had provided no proof of the claim.
“Half of the international community have been under the wrong idea for the last five years. They have thought that she’s been under house arrest. Actually, she’s been in prison all of this time,” Aris told RFA.
He said Myanmar’s military had repeatedly spread claims about changes to Suu Kyi’s detention status, while the international community accepted the statements without verification.
Aris called on world leaders to follow the example of French President Emmanuel Macron by publicly demanding proof that his mother is alive and calling for the restoration of her basic rights.
“All I can ask for is that the international community and the world leaders follow President Macron of France’s example and make their position very clear and call out for proof that my mother is alive and for her to have her basic human rights restored,” he said.
Suu Kyi, 80, has been detained since Myanmar’s military seized power in a February 2021 coup that removed her elected government. She has been convicted on multiple charges brought by the military authorities, which her supporters and international observers have described as politically motivated.
Aris said the charges against his mother were false and called for her immediate release.
“She’s been sentenced to however many years it is, I don’t know, 25 or 30 years in prison and these charges against her are completely false. In the first place, she should never have been in prison,” he told RFA.
His remarks come as regional efforts continue over how to engage with Myanmar’s military government, with critics warning that greater diplomatic recognition could undermine calls for accountability and human rights.