Aung San Suu Kyi, Nobel Peace Prize winner, is sentenced to 2 years in prison

The overthrown leader of Burma Aung San Suu Kyi was sentenced to two years in prison this Monday by the military junta for inciting public disorder and for violating the regulations against pandemic, a sentence that sparked international criticism.

Suu Kyi was initially sentenced to two years for inciting public disorder against the army and another two for breaking a law on natural disasters related to the Covidthe board spokesperson told AFP by phone, Zaw min tun.

The ex-president Win myint he was also initially sentenced to four years on the same charges.

But shortly after the head of the Board, Min aung hlaing, “pardoned” their sentences to “two years in prison,” according to a statement read on state television.

The Peace NobelThe 76-year-old has been detained since the military deposed her government on February 1, ending a brief period of democracy in Burma.

Since then, the board has established a series of accusations against her, including violation of the law on official secrets, corruption and electoral fraud.

Several experts denounce that this is a political process to neutralize the politics that won the elections in 2015 and 2020.

“Affront to justice”

“We demand that the regime release Aung San Suu Kyi and all the other unjustly detained, including democratically elected officials,” said the US Secretary of State. Antony blinken in a statement, describing the sentence as “an affront to democracy and justice.”

The High Commissioner of the UN for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, denounced “a rigged trial” and the head of diplomacy of the European Union (EU) “a new step in the dismantling of the rule of law.”

For its part, the committee that awards the Nobel Peace Prize said on Monday it was “concerned” about Suu Kyi after an “implausible” trial.

The incitement charges are related to statements by his party, the National League for Democracy (LND), condemning the coup shortly after the military took power.

The accusations related to the pandemic concern last year’s elections, in which Suu Kyi’s party was wiped out, but the details are not clear, as the government imposes a gag order on judicial processes.

Journalists do not have access to the special court in the Burmese capital and Suu Kyi’s lawyers are prohibited from speaking to the press.

In recent weeks, other members of the NLD have been sentenced to harsh prison terms.

A former minister was sentenced this month to 75 years in prison and a close friend of Suu Kyi will have to spend 20 years in jail.

“Suffocate freedoms”

The sentence was condemned by the organization International Amnesty, which denounced an attempt by the junta to “stifle freedoms” by imprisoning Suu Kyi.

“The severe sentences inflicted on Aung San Suu Kyi for these false accusations are the latest example so far of the army’s determination to eliminate and stifle freedoms in Burma,” Amnesty said in a statement.

The Nobel Peace Prize winner faces decades in prison if convicted on all charges. The next sentence is scheduled for December 14, for the alleged violation of a law on natural disasters.

The senior adviser for Burma at the International Crisis Group think tank Richard Horsey told AFP that the sentences “are a way for the military to show its power.”

“It would be surprising, however, if she were sent to prison. Most likely, she will serve this and future sentences at home or in a special ‘guest residence’ regime,” he added.

More than 1,300 people have died and more than 10,000 have been arrested in the crackdown on dissidents since the coup, according to a local monitoring group.

The military who have ruled Burma for decades defended the coup by asserting themselves in allegations of fraud in last year’s elections.

International pressure for the military junta to restore democracy does not appear to affect the generals and the violent crackdown on protests continues to plague the country.