A court in Myanmar sentenced two members of ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s political party to 90 years and 75 years in prison on Tuesday after finding them guilty of corruption.
The sentences appeared to be the most severe so far for any of the dozens of members of Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy who were arrested after the military seized power on Feb. 1.
Former Kayin state planning minister Than Naing was convicted by the state court of six corruption charges and given a 90-year prison term, including labor.
The second defendant, Nan Khin Htwe Myint, aged 67, the former chief minister of Kayin state and a top member of Suu Kyi’s political party, was sentenced to 15 years in prison on each of five charges.
Suu Kyi is also being tried on corruption and other criminal charges that her supporters say were concocted to discredit her and legitimize the military’s seizure of power.
Virtually any conviction would prevent her from running in elections that the military-installed government has promised to hold by 2023.
She was detained by soldiers on Feb. 2 and placed under house arrest, where she made a live-streamed broadcast calling for civil disobedience against the army takeover. She was then arrested on Feb. 8.
Myanmar has been mired in violence and civil unrest since the military seized power. Protesters against the takeover who faced beatings, shootings and arrests have turned increasingly to armed resistance, and insurgents are active in many parts of the country.
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