Myanmar’s detained former leader Aung San Suu Kyi has rare meeting with International Red Cross

Myanmar’s former leader Aung San Suu Kyi, currently detained, met with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) representative in the country’s capital city on Monday, according to the military-backed government. This represents a rare opportunity for the Nobel laureate, who has been largely out of the public eye since the military took control in 2021.

Photographs accompanying the announcement depicted Suu Kyi shaking hands with Arnaud de Baecque, ICRC’s representative to Myanmar, and meeting with him in a room furnished with wood panelling. The Presidential Press and Information Bureau released the images, but did not disclose the meeting's location or discuss the topics discussed.

Additional photographs showed Suu Kyi celebrating her 81st birthday in June, suggesting she seemed relaxed and in good health during the photographs. The release of this information comes as other countries, including fellow Association of Southeast Asian Nations members, are increasingly demanding access to or engagement with Suu Kyi as part of attempts to resolve Myanmar’s political crisis.

Suu Kyi’s younger son, living in London, and democracy activists have launched an online campaign demanding evidence that their mother is alive and well.