YANGON: A military court in Myanmar has jailed a journalist for life and sentenced another to 20 years in prison after convicting them under a counterterrorism law, their editor said on Thursday (Aug 29).
Myo Myint Oo and Aung San Oo, who work for the independent online news service Dawei Watch, were sentenced after being denied the right to legal defence and not being allowed to speak in court, editor Ko Kyaw told AFP.
Since overthrowing Aung San Suu Kyi’s civilian government in February 2021, Myanmar’s military junta has waged a sweeping and bloody campaign against dissent, including targeting independent journalists.
The two journalists were arrested at their homes in the coastal town of Myeik, about 560km south of Yangon on Dec 11 last year.
Myo Mynit Oo, 40, was handed a life sentence on May 15, while Aung San Oo, 49, was handed a 20-year jail term on Feb 16.
They were “violently interrogated” for four days in a detention centre before being transferred to the Myeik Prison, a statement from Dawei Watch said.
