Britain’s King Charles III has sent two books to detained Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi, according to the country’s military government, which released photographs on Monday showing officials handing over the books and a sealed letter to her.
Suu Kyi, 81, has been in detention since Myanmar’s military overthrew her government in 2021. She was subsequently jailed on charges widely regarded as politically motivated.
The gesture comes as Myanmar’s coup leader Min Aung Hlaing seeks to ease the country’s international isolation after being named president following an election widely criticised as neither free nor fair, reports BBC.
Min Aung Hlaing, who is barred from entering Western countries and has been accused of crimes against humanity, has stepped up diplomatic engagement across Asia and is also holding discussions with the United States.
The two books delivered to Suu Kyi were identified as Soil to Table, written by British gardeners Bridget Elworthy and Henrietta Courtauld, and Soil: The World at Our Feet, a catalogue from an exhibition held in London last year.
Soil to Table has been described as “a celebration of soil and its connection to the food we eat”.
Suu Kyi, who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991 for her non-violent campaign for democracy in Myanmar, is known to have read extensively while in prison, particularly books on religion and nature.
Photographs released alongside Monday’s statement show her wearing a pale green traditional Burmese blouse and an olive-coloured skirt, seated across a table from two men dressed in white shirts.
However, the statement provided no information about her current health or details of the conversation during the meeting.
Suu Kyi was initially sentenced to 33 years in prison following the 2021 military coup. She was transferred to house arrest in June.
In August, the military government released photographs showing her meeting a representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross. It was the first confirmed contact with a foreign representative since she sent a letter to her son, Kim Aris, two-and-a-half years earlier.
Aris, who is based in London and has campaigned for years for his mother’s release, welcomed the photographs at the time, saying she appeared to be “in good health”.
