Aung San Suu Kyi, the country's detained former leader and Nobel laureate, has been transferred from prison to house arrest on fears that she might suffer heat stroke, a Myanmar military government spokesperson said. Suu Kyi, 78, has been detained by the Myanmar military, enduring periods of solitary confinement, since the 2021 coup that ousted her government.
"Given that the weather is extremely hot, it is not only for Aung San Suu Kyi ... For all those, who need necessary precautions, especially elderly prisoners, we are working to protect them from heatstroke," junta spokesperson Major General Zaw Min Tun announced on Wednesday in comments reported by multiple local media outlets.
Under House Arrest Again
Suu Kyi was sentenced to 27 years in prison in the capital city of Naypyitaw for treason, bribery, and violating the telecommunications law, which her friends and rights organizations believe she was falsely accused of.
After the army overthrew the elected government in 2021, imprisoned Suu Kyi, and started putting down peaceful demonstrations calling for the restoration of democratic governance, a national conflict broke out in Myanmar.
In February, Suu Kyi's son, Kim Aris, said that she was being held in solitary confinement but maintained good spirits, despite her health not being as robust as before.
Aris has expressed his desire for his mother to be allowed to return to her home in Yangon, Myanmar's largest city.
Last autumn, he criticized the military leaders' decision to keep his mother imprisoned, particularly given her declining health, describing it as "heinous" in an interview with The Independent.
"To hold someone illegally in prison, a move condemned by the outside world, is compounded into further and heinous wrong when basic human rights are abrogated," he said.
World Condemns Arrest
World leaders and pro-democracy activists have consistently demanded the release of Aung San Suu Kyi.
Suu Kyi's legal team is continuously appealing to prove her innocence in the ongoing cases, while also working on appeals for the 14 others she is accused alongside.
A spokesperson for the NUG shadow government has urged the unconditional release of Suu Kyi and U Win Myint, Myanmar's ousted president, who, according to media reports, has also been transferred to house arrest.
"Moving them from prisons to houses is good, as houses are better than prisons. However, they must be unconditionally freed. They must take full responsibility for the health and security of Aung San Suu Kyi and U Win Myint," spokesperson Kyaw Zaw said late on Tuesday.
General Min Aung Hlaing has been the ruler of Myanmar since the deposition and arrest of Aung San Suu Kyi during the coup in February 2021.
