Aung San Suu Kyi Describes Isolation, Hand Pain in 20-Minute Call

Myanmar's military set up a 20-minute phone conversation Thursday between Aung San Suu Kyi and her son, their first contact since the 2021 coup that removed her government. The exchange came as the army's president, Min Aung Hlaing, travels abroad seeking diplomatic support while the conflict inside the country continues.

Kim Aris, 49, a carpenter in London, told NPR that his 81-year-old mother opened by asking about his condition. He relayed greetings from relatives and asked about hers. "My mother is actually alive and well," Aris said, adding that hearing her voice "has reassured me."

Suu Kyi has been sentenced to 33 years on corruption and electoral fraud counts, a term handed down through trials that concluded in 2022. The sentence was later reduced, and 18 years remain. Khaing Khaing Soe, a spokesperson for the military-backed president, wrote on social media that the call was routed through Myanmar's Embassy in London.

Aris said she is housed at a residence near Naypyidaw, with police and military personnel around a fenced perimeter and a scrubby garden she is permitted to use. "From what I can ascertain, she's basically being held in solitary confinement even if she's not in a prison cell," he said. She reads books but, according to Aris, cannot receive radio, television or newspapers. He reported she "sounded strong" though tendonitis causes pain and sometimes stops her hand from working. She told him checkups occur every six months. Aris said he is weighing a request for a mix of healthy food and treats, including Ben's Cookies from Oxford, where she raised her sons before returning to Burma in 1988.

Aris believes the military monitored the exchange, so he avoided topics such as the civil war. He described the call as an image effort by the regime as Min Aung Hlaing, who became president after a military-engineered January election, courts support overseas. "I hope that governments around the world won't be taken in," he said. ACLED, a monitoring group, puts the war's death toll at about 100,000, and the U.N. reports millions displaced. The U.S. State Department in August again sought Suu Kyi's "immediate and unconditional release" and continues to press for "genuine dialogue with all opposition groups." Aris said the call may happen once and that his mother believes she gives the people of Burma strength by sharing what they are going through.