Aung San Suu Kyi’s son has called on Emmanuel Macron to demand independent proof that his 80-year-old mother is alive after she was purportedly moved to house arrest in Myanmar.
In a letter personally delivered to France’s foreign minister Jean-Noël Barrot, Kim Aris, the son of the Nobel Peace Prize laureate, urged France to intervene, underscoring the urgency of the situation.
Fears over her well-being and whereabouts have intensified sharply following her abrupt transfer from the Naypyitaw prison to a heavily guarded residence in the capital. The move – carried out without public disclosure or independent oversight – has only deepened concerns that her detention is being concealed from scrutiny.
The Nobel Peace Prize laureate has been held incommunicado for five years, denied access to her lawyers, her family, and any independent observers since the military seized power in the 2021 coup d’état. Since then, she has been handed a cumulative 33-year sentence on charges widely condemned as politically motivated which has been since reduced multiple times.
International pressure has been mounting on Myanmar’s government as the Philippines – currently chairing the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) – has also stepped in, demanding to meet with Ms Suu Kyi, signalling growing regional unease.
Mr Aris has repeatedly warned that the prolonged silence is itself alarming. There has been no confirmed sighting of Ms Suu Kyi in over three years. The only image released dates back to a court appearance in May 2021, at the outset of a protracted and widely criticised trial.
“I implore France to join my call so that we may obtain independently verified proof of life, and so that her fundamental rights are guaranteed: appropriate medical care, access to her lawyers and to her family,” Mr Aris wrote in the letter to the French president, according to AFP.
Ms Suu Kyi’s lawyer, Francois Zimeray, said Mr Aris met France’s foreign minister on Tuesday and pressed the French government to demand independent proof.
“We have had no proof of life, no photos for years, not even any indication that she was actually transferred. We still don’t know where she is,” Mr Zimeray said.
Her other lawyer, Catalina de la Sota, said: “We cannot imagine that she is no longer alive, but why is she being kept in total secrecy, in violation of all international conventions? We are worried about her health.”
Mr Barrot told Euro News that he took note of Myanmar’s update on the former leader and stressed that France would continue to “work towards the immediate and unconditional release of Aung San Suu Kyi”.
He gave “particular attention to her health conditions, as well as the need to allow her access to care and contact with her lawyers and relatives, welcoming in this regard the “Proof of Life” campaign, led in particular by the dissident’s son”.
Announcing her release from detention in prison on 30 April, the junta released an undated photograph of Ms Suu Kyi.
The Myanmar junta’s attempt to allay concerns by releasing an undated photograph has instead fuelled further suspicion. The image, showing Ms Suu Kyi seated between two uniformed officials, has been dismissed by her son and lawyers as potentially outdated – or even artificially generated.
“We don’t know if this image is authentic or generated by artificial intelligence,” Mr Zimeray, her lawyer, said.
The Philippines on Wednesday also called on Myanmar to allow the special envoy of the 11-member Asean bloc to meet with Ms Suu Kyi.
“We view these developments as vital steps in a sequence of confidence-building measures necessary for long-term national stability in Myanmar,” the Philippines, serving as this year’s chair of Asean, said in a statement.
The Philippine department of foreign affairs said Myanmar should allow Ms Suu Kyi to communicate with her family to “demonstrate genuine commitment to national reconciliation.”
Reports have also suggested that her transfer to house arrest may have taken place nearly two weeks before it was publicly announced, during the closing days of the Thingyan water festival.
According to Irrawady News, the residence where she is being held was hastily constructed, with heavy security imposed across parts of the capital during the move. It said the announcement of her release from prison came almost 14 days after she was actually moved.
