Kim Aris, the youngest son of Myanmar's ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi, has urged the army to release his mother who is currently in jail after she was handed a 33-year sentence in a series of trials following the coup that toppled her democratically-elected government in February 2021.
The court ruling on Friday found Suu Kyi guilty of corruption in relation to the purchase, repair and rental of a helicopter for use during natural disasters and state affairs, including rescues and emergencies, CNN reported citing a source.
Twelve members of the U.N. Security Council voted in favour of the resolution, while China, Russia and India abstained.
She, along with former President U Win Myint and former Union Minister of Union Government Office, U Min Thu, was found guilty of electoral fraud, said the information team on Saturday.
Zabuthiri Township judge Maung Maung Khin handed down the sentence at a junta-controlled closed court in the Naypyitaw Detention Centre, News Agency, Myanmar Now reported.
Suu Kyi, ousted in a widely condemned military coup last year, was moved to a jail in the capital Naypyitaw in June where she is being held in solitary confinement, the army said.
In April, she was sentenced to five years in jail in the first corruption case, where she was accused of accepting a bribe of $600,000 and gold from a former chief minister of Yangon city.
While it is true that the world has invested in Myanmar’s democratic transition over the past decade, the unbelievably naïve dumping of Ms Suu Kyi as the best bet for the country because she allegedly defended the military action against Rohingya insurgents in Rakhine state (while being critical of excesses by the security forces) has been the international community’s cardinal error.
The sentences are to be served concurrently. She also received a two-year sentence under the Natural Disaster Management Law for allegedly violating coronavirus rules while campaigning. Suu Kyi was convicted last month on two other charges ~ incitement and breaching Covid-19 restrictions ~ and sentenced to four years’ imprisonment. Hours after that sentence was issued, the head of the military-installed government, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, reduced it by half.
They include charges of corruption, violating COVID-19 pandemic restrictions during the 2020 election campaign.
