A military court in Myanmar on Monday convicted Aung San Suu Kyi, the country’s deposed leader, to four years in prison for violating coronavirus restrictions and “incitement.”
Former President Win Myint was also sentenced to four years in prison by the court in Naypyidaw, the administrative capital of the country, according to the daily Irrawaddy.
Suu Kyi, 76, and Myint were among hundreds of people detained in Myanmar’s military junta’s pre-dawn takeover in February, which sparked huge demonstrations.
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The “incitement statements,” mentioned in the charges, were put on her party’s Facebook page after Suu Kyi and other party leaders had already been detained by the military, while the charges regarding violation of coronavirus restrictions date back to her election campaign appearances.
The ousted leader led the National League for Democracy party which was set to begin a second five-year term in office after winning elections in November 2020.
#Myanmar sentenced the country’s leader,Aung Sam Suu Kyi to 4 years in jail. Kyi,76 was awarded Nobel Peace Prize in 1991 for her struggle for democracy,won election in 2015, failed to stop massacre of Muslim Rohingya;was deposed by a military coup in 2021 https://t.co/0aVxDEaV7L
— Anna Nemtsova (@annanemtsova) December 6, 2021
Junta forces have killed around 1,000 people and detained another 5,400 during the anti-coup demonstrations in the Southeast Asian nation.
UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss condemned the sentencing and called on Myanmar to release all political prisoners and allow a return to democracy.
“The arbitrary detention of elected politicians only risks further unrest,” she said.
And rights group Amnesty called the charges “bogus”, saying it was the “latest example of the military’s determination to eliminate all opposition and suffocate freedoms in Myanmar”.
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Ms Suu Kyi is next due in court on 14 December, when she will face charges of possessing illegal walkie-talkies.
Anadolu with additional input by GVS News Desk