The court is expected to rule on Monday in a lawsuit accusing the Nobel Peace Prize laureate of corruption, AFP has learned. Aung San Suu Kyi was prosecuted for demanding $600,000 and more than 11 kilograms of gold in bribes from the former minister in charge of Rangoon, Pheu Min Thein.
The 76-year-old politician has been detained since the military coup ended a decade of Myanmar’s democratic transition in February. The former leader was charged on a number of issues, including violating colonial-era state secrets, rigging elections, inciting public anger, and corruption. He faces a total of several decades in prison.
The Nobel Peace Prize winner has been under house arrest for a year and must remain there for the duration of the trial. The trial is taking place behind closed doors and his lawyer is not allowed to speak to the press and representatives of international organizations.
Several of Aung San Suu Kyi’s relatives and former associates have already been sentenced to severe punishment: a former member of parliament, a former minister, was sentenced to 75 years in prison and one of his aides was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Others went into exile or went into hiding. The Nobel Prize-winning politician spent nearly 15 years under house arrest during previous military dictatorships.
The February 2021 coup, according to field reports, has plunged the country into chaos. According to news agencies, security forces killed more than 1,750 civilians and arrested more than 13,000 people.
Opening image: MTI / EPA / Maung Lonlan
