Myanmar's ruling junta has asserted that the detained former leader Aung San Suu Kyi is "in good health," issuing a statement a day after her son, Kim Aris, expressed deep concern over her condition and the lack of information regarding his 80-year-old mother.
A statement on junta-run Myanmar Digital News claimed, "Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is in good health," using an honorific. However, the statement provided no supporting evidence or details about her current condition.
Kim Aris, who has not heard from his mother in years, said in a recent interview that he believes she is being held incommunicado in Naypyidaw and fears she could die without him knowing. He stated, "I now have to ask the most painful question: is she still alive?"
Aris responded to the junta's claim by demanding independent proof, stating, "If she is truly well, they can prove it," by providing a recent photograph, medical verification, or access by family, doctors, or international observers.
Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, was detained following the 2021 military coup that overthrew her civilian government. She is currently serving a 27-year sentence on various charges, all of which she denies.
Aris expressed a hope that the upcoming multi-phase election, starting December 28, might prompt the military to release her or move her to house arrest, citing the military's history of prisoner releases around major events. However, he also joined critics, including foreign governments, who dismiss the polls as a "sham."
The junta, in turn, accused Aris of attempting to disrupt the election, calling his claims a "fabrication" timed to interfere with the upcoming vote.
Suu Kyi's party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), remains dissolved, and other anti-junta groups are boycotting the polls.
