Myanmar: ‘Kangaroo court’ sentences Nobel Peace Laureate Suu Kyi to 4 years
Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: As expected, a ‘kangaroo court’ of Myanmar’s ruling military junta, which returned to power after toppling a democratically elected government in February this year, has sentenced its ousted leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, to four years in prison, finding her guilty of “incitement and violating coronavirus restrictions.”
The media reported on Monday, quoting an unnamed legal official, that the sentencing was the first in a series of cases in which the 76-year-old Nobel Peace Laureate (1991) is being prosecuted since the army seized power on February 1, preventing her National League for Democracy party from starting a second five-year term in office.
Since then, the Myanmar people have been agitating for the restoration of democracy in the country.
The alleged incitement case involved statements posted on her party’s Facebook page after she and other party leaders had already been detained by the military, while the coronavirus charge involved a campaign appearance ahead of elections in November 2020 which her party overwhelmingly won and when the pandemic infections had waned.
The Myanmar military, whose pocket party lost heavily in the last election, claimed massive voting fraud, but independent election observers did not detect any major irregularities, according to reports.
A legal official who requested anonymity, fearing punishment, spoke about the court ruling. Aung San Suu Kyi’s trials are closed to the media and spectators. Even her lawyers, the sole source of information on the proceedings, were banned in October 2021from releasing information.
The cases against Suu Kyi are perceived as trumped-up charges to discredit and prevent her from running in the next election. The Myanmar Constitution bars anyone from contesting polls, holding high office, or becoming a lawmaker if convicted and sentenced for a crime.
On Sunday, protesters marched against the military government demanding Suu Kyi’s and other leaders’ release. An army truck was seen speeding into a march by about 30 young people in Yangon, the country’s biggest city. At least three of the protesters may have been killed, unconfirmed reports suggested.
Defense lawyers argued that Suu Kyi and a co-defendant, former President Win Myint, could not be held responsible for the statements criticizing the army takeover, because they were already detained.
The military junta’s February seizure of power triggered nationwide nonviolent demonstrations. The security forces, using brutal force, killed about 1,300 civilians since then, according to an NGO, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners. The UN’s experts have warned the country is sliding into civil war.
The military took Suu Kyi into custody on the day of its takeover, and she has not been seen in public since then, though she has appeared in court in several of her trials.
In mid-November, the military-appointed poll panel announced it intended to prosecute Suu Kyi and 15 other senior political figures for alleged fraud in the last election, which could cause her party to be dissolved.
