Defence lawyers argued that Suu Kyi could not be held responsible for statements on her party’s Facebook page, because she was already in detention.
A special court in Myanmar’s capital has sentenced the country’s ousted leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, to four years in prison after finding her guilty of incitement and violating coronavirus restrictions.
Monday’s sentencing was the first in a series of cases in which the 76-year-old Nobel laureate is being prosecuted since the army seized power on February 1.
The 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 last year which her party overwhelmingly won.
The army, whose allied party lost many seats in the election, claimed massive voting fraud, but independent election observers did not detect any major irregularities.
Defence lawyers argued that Suu Kyi and co-defendant former President Win Myint could not be held responsible for the Facebook statements, which criticized the takeover and suggested in broad terms that it be resisted, because they were already in detention.
The former mayor of Naypyitaw, Myo Aung, was another defendant in the charge, which carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison and a fine. Win Myint was sentenced to a total of four years and Myo Aung to two years.
Ongoing charges
Judgment on Suu Kyi’s second count of violating coronavirus restrictions is scheduled for December 14. The maximum penalty for each count is three years’ imprisonment and a fine.
Other cases against Suu Kyi now being tried cover the alleged unregistered import and use of walkie-talkies by her security guards, violation of the Official Secrets Act, in which jailed Australian economist Sean Turnell is a co-defendant, and four separate corruption charges covering the alleged acceptance of a bribe and abuse of office to obtain favorable terms on property transactions.
Each of the corruption charges has a maximum penalty of 15 years’ imprisonment and a fine.
A trial on a fifth corruption charge has not yet started, and state media last week announced a sixth charge has also been filed against Suu Kyi.
The latest charge accuses her and Win Myint of corruption in granting permits to rent and buy a helicopter.
The cases against Suu Kyi are widely seen as contrived to discredit her and keep her from running in the next election. The constitution bars anyone sent to prison after being convicted of a crime from holding high office or becoming a lawmaker.
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(With input from news agency language)
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