Myanmar court delays ruling in case against Suu Kyi until Dec. 27

Bangkok, Dec 20 (EFE).- A Myanmar court delayed Monday its ruling on one of the criminal proceedings filed against the ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi to Dec. 27.

The judge, who planned to announce his sentence Monday for a charge related to the possession without a license of several walkie-talkies and a signal jammer, gave no reason for the postponement, a source close to the trial told EFE who spoke anonymously for fear of retaliation.

Suu Kyi, found guilty of two other crimes, faces an accusation for violating the telecommunications law, punishable by one year in jail, and the Export and Import Law, punishable by up to three years.

The ousted leader, who at a Friday hearing wore the usual prison suit, was sentenced on Dec. 6 to four years in prison reduced to two by a pardon from the military junta, on charges of incitement and violating Covid-19 rules.

The conviction would prevent Suu Kyi from running in a hypothetical election if the military keep their promise to hold an election organized by them in 2023.

Following her arrest on the same day of the coup, the elected leader spent several months under house arrest at her official residence in the capital and was later transferred to an undisclosed location, according to lawyers.

In addition, Suu Kyi, 76, is accused of other varied charges such as violating the Official Secrets Law and various accusations of corruption, punishable by 14 and 15 years in prison respectively.

Despite the judicial harassment carried out by the military junta, the image of Suu Kyi continues to be the popular icon in the demonstrations opposing the military junta and demanding the restoration of democracy and the liberation of the leader.

Suu Kyi, whom authorities have kept practically incommunicado, is in apparent good health.

More than 10 months after the coup, the military junta still does not have complete control of the country despite the brutal violence used against dissent, which has caused at least 1,346 deaths to date, according to an organization of Myanmar activists.

The Myanmar Army justifies the coup on alleged electoral fraud in the November 2020 elections, in which Suu Kyi’s party won a landslide victory, as it did in 2015, and were considered legitimate by international observers. EFE

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