Ousted Myanmar Leader Suu Kyi Sentenced To Five Years In Prison For Corruption

Topline

A Myanmar court on Wednesday sentenced ousted leader, Aung San Suu Kyi to five years in prison in the first of several corruption cases brought against her by the country’s military junta that seized power last year in a coup.

Key Facts

The military court ruled Suu Kyi was guilty in the first of eleven corruption cases where she was accused of accepting $600,000 and 11.4 kg of gold from Phyo Min Thein—the former chief minister of Myanmar’s largest city Yangon and a member of her party.

Suu Kyi has already been sentenced to six years imprisonment in other cases where she has been accused of inciting public unrest, violating the country’s pandemic laws during her 2020 election campaign and illegally importing walkie talkies.

The 76-year-old Nobel laureate faces more than 100 years in prison if she is found guilty in all the 18 cases she faces accusing her of corruption and fomenting public unrest.

Suu Kyi’s supporters and independent observers dismissed the ruling as unjust, noting that it was simply an effort by the country’s military dictatorship to cement its power while preventing her from returning to politics.

Crucial Quote

“We do not recognise the terrorist junta’s rulings, legislation, or the judiciary … the people do not acknowledge them either,” Nay Phone Latt, a former official in Suu Kyi’s party told Reuters. He added that any rulings made by the military court were temporary as the junta’s rule won’t last long.

Big Number

1,798. That’s the number of civilians who have been killed in Myanmar since the military junta took power in a coup last year, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP). Additionally 13,401 people have been arrested by the military regime.

Key Background

In 2020, Suu Kyi and her party won a landslide victory in the country’s general elections which came after she was forced into a power sharing agreement with the military for five years. The military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party, after being trounced in the elections, cried foul and immediately alleged voter fraud—a claim dismissed by independent election observers. In February 2021, the military seized power in a coup and repeated the unproven voter fraud accusations—leading to the detention of Suu Kyi and her allies. The coup triggered global condemnation and nationwide protests which have prevented the junta from fully consolidating their power across the country.

Further Reading

Myanmar court sentences Suu Kyi to 5 years for corruption (Associated Press)

Myanmar’s Suu Kyi handed 5 year jail term for corruption (Reuters)