Naypyidaw: A Myanmar military court on Friday convicted Aung San Suu Kyi on further five corruption charges, adding seven more years to her prison sentence, reports said.
According to reports, the court session in army-ruled Myanmar was held behind closed doors and a gag order prevented lawyers from discussing the trial.
Since the army overthrew Suu Kyi’s elected government in February 2021, a number of charges, which critics call politically motivated, have resulted in her being sentenced to a total of 33 years in jail.
The 77-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate has been found guilty of every charge brought against her by the junta, including corruption, possessing walkie-talkies, defying Covid-19 restrictions and violating the official secrets act. She can appeal the latest verdict.
In September, Suu Kyi and former-President Win Myint were convicted of trying to influence Myanmar’s electoral commission ahead of the 2020 elections and sentenced to three years in prison.
She has called the charges brought against her absurd.
The junta, meanwhile, has argued that the accusations are true and that Suu Kyi has been granted a fair trial by an impartial court.
Western nations have condemned the proceedings as a charade intended to intimidate the junta’s main foe, as the military-proposed election next year draws close.
Suu Kyi is currently being imprisoned at the Naypyitaw jail in a newly built separate facility that is close to the courthouse where her trial was conducted.
