A MYANMAR court today jailed ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi for four years for inciting dissent against the military and breaching Covid-19 rules, a spokesman for the ruling junta told AFP.

Suu Kyi “was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment under section 505(b) and two years’ imprisonment under natural disaster law”, junta spokesman Zaw Min Tun said.

Former president Win Myint was also jailed for four years under the same charges, he said, adding that they would not yet be taken to prison.

“They will face other charges from the places where they are staying now” in the capital Naypyidaw, he added, without giving further details.

The 76-year-old Suu Kyi has been detained since the generals ousted her government in the early hours of February 1, ending Myanmar’s brief democratic interlude.

The junta has since added a slew of other indictments, including violating the official secrets act, corruption and electoral fraud. The Nobel laureate faces decades in jail if convicted on all counts.

Journalists have been barred from proceedings in the special court in the military-built capital, and Suu Kyi’s lawyers were recently banned from speaking to the media.

In recent weeks, the trials of other ranking members of Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy have wrapped up, with the junta doling out harsh sentences.

A former chief minister was sentenced to 75 years in jail this month, while a close Suu Kyi aide was jailed for 20.

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

International pressure on the junta to restore democracy swiftly has shown no sign of knocking the generals off course, and bloody clashes with anti-coup protesters continue across the country.

Amnesty International immediately condemned the sentences against Suu Kyi.

“The harsh sentences handed down to Aung San Suu Kyi on these bogus charges are the latest example of the military’s determination to eliminate all opposition and suffocate freedoms in Myanmar,” said Amnesty deputy regional director for Campaigns Ming Yu Hah.

“The court’s farcical and corrupt decision is part of a devastating pattern of arbitrary punishment that has seen more than 1,300 people killed and thousands arrested since the military coup in February.”

International Crisis Group’s Myanmar senior advisor Richard Horsey also told AFP the sentences “were about retribution and a show of power by the military”.

“It would be surprising, though, if she were sent to prison. More likely, she’ll serve out this and subsequent terms at her house or a regime ‘guest house’.” – AFP, December 6, 2021.