Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Legal News Blogs -> JURIST - The Paper Chase

Legal News

: JURIST - The Paper Chase

Myanmar court finds Suu Kyi guilty of violating house arrest

By Bernard Hibbitts (editor) and University of Pittsburgh School of Law students.

[JURIST] A Myanmar court on Monday convicted opposition pro-democracy advocate Aung San Suu Kyi of violating the terms of her house arrest, sentencing her to an additional 18 months under house arrest. Suu Kyi had been charged with violating state security laws by allowing an American to stay with her after he swam across a lake to her home. The American, John Yettaw, was tried along with Suu Kyi and sentenced to seven years in prison, with four years of hard labor. Suu Kyi's conviction was condemned by many world leaders. The European Union (EU) issued a statement saying,he proceedings against Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, on charges which were brought twenty years after she was first wrongfully arrested, have been in breach of national and international law. The EU urges the authorities to immediately and unconditionally release her." US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, "she should not have been tried and she should not have been convicted. We continue to call for her release from continuing house arrest." UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he was "both saddened and angry at the verdict." French President Nicholas Sarkozy called the verdict "brutal and unjust." Suu Kyi's trial resumed last month after a delay with the testimony of Khin Moe Moe, a member of Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy (NLD) party, who claimed the charges were politically motivated. In June, a Myanmar court sentenced two members of the NLD to 18 months in prison after leading prayers for Suu Kyi's release. Her arrest was controversial and highly criticized by the international community. She has spent 12 of the past 18 years in prison or under house arrest for alleged violations of an anti-subversion law. News of Suu Kyi's trial has been met with criticism from numerous agencies and governments around the world. Human Rights Watch (HRW) has said the charges against Suu Kyi are "trumped up."

Full post as published by JURIST - The Paper Chase on August 11, 2009 (boomark / email).