Yangon: According to a government official, Myanmar’s junta sentenced ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi to four years in prison on Monday for inciting against the military and violating Covid regulations, the first of a series of possible sentences that may see the Nobel laureate imprisoned for decades. She has been arrested since the military overthrew her government on February 1, thereby ending Myanmar’s brief time of democracy.
She has now been charged with a slew of offences, including official secrets violations, corruption, and election fraud, and if convicted on all counts, she may face decades in prison. She was sentenced to two years in prison on Monday for inciting violence against the military and another two years for violating a natural disaster statute related to Covid, according to junta spokesperson Zaw Min Tun.
He stated that former president Win Myint had been sentenced to four years in prison on the same accusations, but that they had not yet been brought to prison.
Journalists have been restricted from attending court sessions in Naypyidaw’s special court, and Suu Kyi’s lawyers have lately been prohibited from communicating to the media. The charges against her were promptly denounced by Amnesty International. The military, which has ruled Myanmar for decades, has supported the coup, citing claims of fraud in last year’s general election, which Suu Kyi’s party easily won. International pressure on the junta to quickly restore democracy has failed to sway the generals, and deadly clashes with anti-coup protests continue across the country.