Suu Kyi gets 6 more years in prison on corruption charges

YANGON • Myanmar's deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi was sentenced to six more years in prison yesterday in a judgment that could further anger supporters of the 77-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate.

A special court inside a prison compound in the capital Naypyidaw found her guilty of four corruption charges related to a charity named after her late mother, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity because the proceedings are not public.

It is the fourth round of criminal verdicts against Ms Suu Kyi since the military seized power in a 2021 coup and brings her total jail term to 17 years, extinguishing any chance of her staging a political comeback while the junta remains in power.

Mandalay region High Court judge Myint San ruled that Ms Suu Kyi caused the state to lose more than 24.2 billion kyat (S$16 million) by leasing land in Naypyidaw to build the headquarters and related projects of Daw Khin Kyi Foundation, a charity which supported public health and education, at a cheaper price than the rate set by the Internal Revenue Department, according to people familiar with the matter and the state media.

Earlier court sentences triggered public anger and intensified armed resistance led by the shadow National Unity Government.

Junta troops have killed nearly 2,200 civilians and arrested more than 15,000 others since the coup, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, which this month said that prisoners in the country are suffering human rights violations.

The junta had accused the deposed leader of misusing public donations to the foundation to build her residence in Naypyidaw and accepting bribes worth US$550,0000 (S$757,000) from a businessman as a donation to the charity in 2019 and 2020. Ms Suu Kyi denied all allegations and pleaded not guilty.

Three other senior officials, including deposed Naypyidaw mayor Myo Aung and his deputy Ye Min Oo, were each sentenced to three years in prison for the same charges. Major-General Zaw Min Tun, lead spokesman for the ruling State Administration Council, did not immediately answer calls seeking comment on the ruling.

Earlier, Ms Suu Kyi was sentenced to a total of 11 years in prison by the same court for six charges, including illegally importing and possessing unlicensed walkie-talkies, breaking Covid-19 rules and inciting dissent against the military. She has called the allegations "absurd", while her supporters say the charges are politically motivated.

The nation's democracy icon was moved from her residence to an unknown location before her first trial began on camera in a state-owned compound in June last year. A year later, she was moved to a military-built solitary confinement unit in Naypyidaw prison. Journalists are not allowed to witness the court proceedings and her lawyers are banned from speaking to the media.

Ms Suu Kyi faces nine more charges, including violating the colonial-era Official Secrets Act and abuse of power to ensure her political party won the 2020 elections. If she is found guilty, the remaining charges could add a maximum of 122 more years to her sentence if served consecutively.

The US and allies have imposed sanctions on Myanmar military generals and supporters since the coup.

Even other member states of regional bloc Asean have been reluctant to cooperate with Myanmar after the junta executed four pro-democracy activists in its first use of capital punishment in over three decades.

BLOOMBERG