In the trial of Myanmar’s disempowered political leadership, Prime Minister Aung San Suu Kyi, who was under house arrest, testified in court for the first time since the coup. However, few details of the hearing were revealed because the ruling military junta banned its legal team from speaking and banned all communication with the media, diplomats, international organizations and foreign governments.
“The junta says the lawyers could destabilize the country through their comments to the media,” wrote The Irrawaddy newspaper. Local media reported that the 76-year-old testified in court on Tuesday. She had “defended her innocence very well”, the portal “Myanmar Now” quoted one of her lawyers who asked for anonymity.
Suu Kyi has been under house arrest since the military coup in February. The judiciary accuses the Nobel Peace Prize winner of half a dozen offenses. Long prison terms are threatened. Observers and human rights experts speak of a show trial and suspect that the junta wants to silence the popular politician in this way in the long term. The disempowered President Win Myint is also on trial.
Myanmar is not part of the annual summit meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which began on Tuesday. The ASEAN states agreed in early October to expel military ruler Min Aung Hlaing from the summit because he was not taking any steps to restore democracy.
