Bangkok, Dec 30, (dpa/GNA) – Military-ruled Myanmar, on Friday sentenced former leader Aung San Suu Kyi to seven more years in prison, following convictions in the final corruption cases against her, sources familiar with the trial told dpa.
They are the latest in a string of convictions Suu Kyi has faced, since being ousted in a military coup in February 2021.
With Friday’s court ruling, the 77-year-old Nobel Peace Prize winner’s prison term has been extended to a total of 33 years for corruption, incitement, breaching Covid-19 rules, electoral fraud, and violating the official secrets act.
Suu Kyi, has been in solitary confinement at a prison in the capital Naypyidaw, since June, after being placed under house arrest in the wake of the military coup.
The proceedings took place behind closed doors, and Suu Kyi’s lawyers are not allowed to speak to the media.
The cases have been widely denounced as military-staged show trials, intended to discredit previous civilian leaders like Suu Kyi and bolster the junta’s own standing.
Myanmar has been in political turmoil since the coup on February 1, 2021. The military has violently cracked down on pro-democracy protests and civil society groups, as it seeks to quash armed resistance by anti-junta militias across the country.
According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, a rights group which documents killings and other abuses, at least 2,685 people have been killed and more than 16,600 arrested since the coup.
GNA