LONDON (Reuters) – The younger son of Aung San Suu Kyi, the former leader of Myanmar, has dismissed the partial pardon granted by the ruling military as “absolutely meaningless”. Kim Aris, who is a British national, urged Western governments to intensify pressure on the junta to take stronger action. Although the pardons will result in a reduction of six years in Suu Kyi’s 33-year prison sentence, Aris compared the move to a propaganda tool employed by the military.
In an interview with Reuters in London, Aris stated, “It doesn’t go far enough in any way… The whole world knows the military have played these games with propaganda, trying to make themselves look better on occasion.”
Myanmar has been in a state of turmoil since early 2021 when the military seized power from Suu Kyi’s elected government and launched a brutal crackdown on opponents of military rule, resulting in the incarceration or death of thousands. Prior to the coup, Suu Kyi had won the 2015 elections, and her party emerged victorious again in 2020, before the military claimed election fraud.
Suu Kyi, a 78-year-old Nobel laureate, has consistently denied all the charges against her, which include incitement, election fraud, and corruption. She has lodged an appeal against her convictions.
Aris, now 44, lamented the lack of communication with his mother since before the coup. He also expressed uncertainty about the conditions under which she is currently being held, dismissing claims of her transfer from prison to house arrest due to the absence of verifiable evidence.
Last month, Thailand’s foreign minister disclosed that he had privately met with Suu Kyi, a rare occurrence involving a foreign official, and confirmed her good health and support for dialogue to address the crisis in Myanmar.
Various governments have urged for the unconditional release of Suu Kyi and other political prisoners. Some countries, including the United States, the European Union, and Britain, have imposed sanctions on Myanmar’s military. Aris called for stronger and more effective sanctions, particularly in areas such as arms supply, to close any loopholes. He is actively collaborating with a shadow National Unity Government composed of Suu Kyi’s supporters and other opponents of the military in order to raise awareness about the situation.
Dialogue, according to Aris, is ultimately the key, although he doubts that Suu Kyi’s partial pardon will lead to any substantial dialogue in the foreseeable future.
(Reporting by Sachin Ravikumar; Editing by Nick Macfie)
Credit: The Star : News Feed
