Sawt Falasteen - Detained Suu Kyi meets Red Cross official in Myanmar: president office

The military deposed Suu Kyi in February 2021, jailing the Nobel Peace Prize laureate and triggering an ongoing civil war that has killed more than 100,000 people on all sides.

The coup leader and former junta chief, Min Aung Hlaing, was installed as civilian president in April following highly restricted elections.

Later that month, Suu Kyi, now 81, was moved to house arrest after Min Aung Hlaing said he had commuted the rest of her sentence.

She was detained on a host of charges which rights groups say were confected to sideline her and her popular National League for Democracy party.

The president's office said in a statement that Arnaud de Baecque, the Resident Representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to Myanmar, met with Suu Kyi on Monday morning.

In photos released by the president's office, Suu Kyi is seen shaking hands with a man who appears to be de Baecque.

Another image shows Suu Kyi cutting a birthday cake, and yet another shows the cake with text reading: "Happy Birthday Aunty Suu".

The images could not be immediately verified by AFP but AI tools found no instances of fabrication.

AFP has contacted the ICRC for comment.

"We are happy to see her photo like this if it's really her meeting with the ICRC. We can know now that she's alive," a veteran politician of her party told AFP on condition of anonymity.

"However, Aunty should be released immediately as she's being detained unlawfully," the politician said.

- Proof of life -

Authorities have not disclosed the exact location of Suu Kyi's detention in the capital Naypyidaw, nor how many years of her sentence remain.

Her son, Kim Aris, a British national, has sought independently verified proof of his mother's life after she was transferred to house arrest.

He says he has not heard from his mother, who remains massively popular inside Myanmar.

Since the coup, Myanmar has been largely ostracised by the international community, and the 11-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has excluded the country's leadership from high-level summits.

But neighbour Thailand has been leading an effort to bring the once pariah state back in the diplomatic fold, both bilaterally and through the regional bloc.

Since his change in position, Min Aung Hlaing has travelled to India, China and ASEAN member Laos, and he is scheduled to make an official visit to Thailand this week.

Despite the diplomatic outreach, the continued detention of Suu Kyi remains a major sticking point for some nations.

The ASEAN bloc has pressed for its special envoy to meet Suu Kyi, but so far Myanmar has refused.

Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow told reporters last month that Myanmar's Foreign Minister Tin Maung Swe had assured his regional counterparts during a trip to Thailand that Suu Kyi was "in good health".

"We have been told she has been taken care of well but it needs to be proved," Sihasak added.

burs-sco/tc

H.Darwish--SF-PST