Myanmar’s detained former leader Aung San Suu Kyi has met a representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the aid organisation has confirmed.
The meeting on Monday followed years of questions over the wellbeing of the ۸۱-year-old, whose whereabouts and health condition have been largely unknown since the elected civilian government she led was ousted by a military coup in February ۲۰۲۱.
Little has been seen or heard of Aung San Suu Kyi since late ۲۰۲۲. Myanmar’s military-backed administrations have repeatedly claimed she is in “good health”, even as international pressure has grown on the country’s government to allow independent verification.
Aung San Suu Kyi’s son, Kim Aris, who had recently demanded the ruling junta provide proof of life, welcomed news of the meeting. He described it as “the first positive development concerning her in more than five years”, adding: “This is an important first step, but it must not be the last,.”
In a social media post, Aris said he hoped the meeting would lead to “greater humanitarian access, direct contact with my mother, credible and independently verified information about her wellbeing, and ultimately her immediate and unconditional release, together with all political prisoners”.
On Monday, Arnaud de Baecque, the resident representative of the ICRC to Myanmar, visited Aung San Suu Kyi in the capital, Naypyidaw, the government spokesperson Khine Khine Soe said in a post on Telegram.
In two of the four photographs provided by Khine Khine Soe, Aung San Suu Kyi – dressed in traditional Burmese attire – is seen with Baecque in a sparsely furnished, wood-panelled room containing only two chairs and a desk.
In another photo, Myanmar’s former leader is seen cutting a birthday cake inscribed with her name. A clothes rack and storage boxes are visible in the background.
A fourth image is a closeup of the cake, inscribed with “Happy Birthday Aunty Suu ۱۹.۶.۲۰۲۶”.
In a statement released afterwards, the ICRC confirmed the visit had occurred and was carried out in accordance with its standards and procedures for visiting people deprived of liberty, including the opportunity to speak with Aung San Suu Kyi in private.
“In line with the ICRC’s working methods, detention visits provide people deprived of liberty with the opportunity to exchange news with their families,” the statement said.
“As is customary in the ICRC’s detention work, observations and recommendations related to the visit are shared exclusively and confidentially with the detaining authorities.”
In late April, after a military-engineered election that allowed the former junta leader Min Aung Hlaing to become Myanmar’s president, authorities said Aung San Suu Kyi had been moved to house arrest.
A photograph of the detained former leader was shown on military-controlled TV, however Aris told the BBC the image was taken years ago.
While the election was largely criticised as a sham, it has led to diplomatic re-engagement with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).
Following a meeting between Myanmar’s foreign minister and counterparts from the regional Asean bloc in Bangkok in July, Thailand’s foreign minister, Sihasak Phuangketkeow, called for access to Aung San Suu Kyi “so that we can be able to verify the claims” of her good health.
But the new military-backed administration had so far been reluctant to provide access to Aung San Suu Kyi, including a May request by the Philippines to allow an Asean special envoy to visit her.
