London:

Myanmar’s detained former leader and Aung San Suu Kyi have been moved from prison to house arrest, her son said on Thursday, potentially being used by the Southeast Asian country’s ruling junta as a human shield in clashes with resistance fighters.

Suu Kyi has been detained by Myanmar’s military since the country overthrew its government in a 2021 coup. The 78-year-old Nobel laureate spent a total of 15 years under house arrest under the former military junta.

A junta spokesman said this week that Suu Kyi had been placed under house arrest to protect her and other elderly prisoners from the hot weather. It’s unclear exactly where she was moved.

Her son Kim Aris, who lives in London, told Reuters he had heard Suu Kyi was suffering from the sweltering heat but that the junta’s official reason for moving her was “unlikely”.

“I think they have their own reasons for moving her, which is that they want to use her as a human shield or a bargaining chip,” Aris said in an interview.

“As the fighting gets closer to military strongholds, I think they may just want to keep her close to use as a human shield, or they may want to negotiate with the resistance for her release to try to gain some sort of benefit, you know, for the future. Lay the foundation,” he said.

Anger against Myanmar’s military junta has evolved into a nationwide armed resistance movement that is now increasingly teaming up with established ethnic rebel groups to challenge the military in much of the country.

World leaders and democracy activists have repeatedly called for Suu Kyi’s release. She faces 27 years in prison after denying treason, bribery and violating telecommunications laws.