Ousted State Counsellor of Myanmar Aung San Suu Kyi Gets 4 More Years in Jail
Analysts say that the Burmese military wants to permanently remove her from the country's political scene.
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A Burmese court sentenced deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi to four more years in prison on Monday, 10 January, after convicting her of importing and possessing walkie-talkies illegally, and after finding her guilty of violating COVID-19 regulations, Reuters reported.
Suu Kyi’s lawyers have said that the radios were not in her possession and that they were genuinely used for security purposes, but the court refused to dismiss the charges.
Her supporters and observers around the world say the charges that she is facing are meant to legitimise the military junta's rule over Myanmar, and to permanently remove her from the country's political scene.
Last month, the former State Counsellor of Myanmar was found guilty of two other charges and was sentenced to two years in prison, a sentence that was initially four years before being halved by the court.
She was detained by Myanmar's military, the Tatmadaw, after the latter overthrew the civilian government in the February 2021 coup and established a military dictatorship.
In total, Suu Kyi faces around a dozen charges against her and if found guilty of all, she could be looking at more than 100 years of jail time.
UN Human Rights chief Michelle Bachelet last week condemned what he called the "sham trial" of the Burmese leader.
The Indian government stated last month that it was "disturbed" by the verdict of Suu Kyi's first trial.
Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla visited Myanmar in December in what was the Indian administration's first official outreach to the military government after the February 2021 coup.
A detailed trajectory of the Nobel laureate's tumultuous political career can be found here.
(With inputs from Reuters.)
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