Aung San Suu Kyi is Gravely Ill – and the World Must Act

Alan Clements

Kim Aris, the youngest son of 80-year-old Aung San Suu Kyi, in recent days told The Independent (UK) that his mother — Myanmar’s imprisoned democracy leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate — is gravely ill with worsening heart disease.

He condemned her treatment by the country’s coup-installed junta as “cruel, life-threatening and unacceptable,” and insisted that “she must be freed.”

“Without proper medical examinations, it is impossible to know what state her heart is in… I am extremely worried. There is no way of verifying if she is even alive,” Aris said.

Suu Kyi is now in her fifth year of solitary confinement, the fourth time she has been detained by Myanmar’s military rulers over the past three decades. More than 20 years of her life have been stolen by revolving-door generals who fear her popularity and moral authority.

Reuters, The Irrawaddy, the Democratic Voice of Burma and other credible news outlets have since amplified the alarm, underscoring the seriousness of Suu Kyi’s condition and the magnitude of the moment.