Tomorrow, Aung San Suu Kyi Will Face The First Verdict Hearing On A Series Of Charges Against Her

JAKARTA - Myanmar's ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi is expected to hear a verdict in a trial on sedition charges tomorrow, the first in a series of trials that could potentially jail him for decades.

The Nobel Peace laureate has been in detention since generals toppled his government in the early hours of February 1, ending the Southeast Asian nation's brief democratic hiatus.

More than 1.200 people have been killed and more than 10.000 arrested in the crackdown on dissent, according to local monitoring groups.

Suu Kyi faces up to three years in prison if found guilty of inciting the military, a charge analysts say is aimed at erasing the democracy icon from the political arena once and for all.

However, the military regime's plans for Suu Kyi remain unknown, they added, and the authorities may also delay the verdict.

Journalists were barred from the trial at a special court in the military-built capital Naypyidaw, with lawyers barred from speaking to the media.

Days after the coup, Suu Kyi was charged with vague charges for possessing a walkie-talkie without a permit, and for violating coronavirus restrictions during her National League for Democracy (NLD) campaign in Myanmar's election that she won in 2020.

It did not stop there, the military regime continued to add many other charges, including violating the official secret law, corruption, and electoral fraud.

Aung San Suu Kyi now appears almost every weekday in the junta's courtroom, with her legal team saying last month her hectic schedule was taking a toll on the 76-year-old's health.

"I think it's almost certain that Suu Kyi will get a severe punishment," said David Mathieson, an analyst formerly based in Myanmar, citing AFP's France 24, November 29.

"The question is what will her detention look like? Will she get the average inmate treatment in a crowded women's cell block, or privileges in a VIP state building?" he continued.

Suu Kyi is under house arrest at her family's colonial-era home in Yangon. Later, the military regime led by Min Aung Hlaing locked him in an undisclosed location in the isolated capital, along with a small staff.

Her contact with the outside world was limited to a brief pre-trial meeting with her lawyer, who had brought the news and delivered a message to her supporters.

In her first court appearance, she used them to send a message of defiance, vowing the NLD would survive and calling on party loyalties to stick together.

On her 76th birthday in June, supporters across the country posted photos of themselves on social media with flowers in their long hair, a signature Suu Kyi look.

Two days later, her legal team delivered a message from Suu Kyi thanking them for the gesture.

But in October his team was hit with a gag order, after they delivered clear testimony from ousted president Win Myint, who explained how he turned down the military's offer to resign to save himself during the coup.

The generals could later reduce any sentence pronounced on the high-profile Suu Kyi, Mathieson said, though he warned against expecting pardons from the junta and its leaders.

"How much mercy does Min Aung Hlaing have?" he said.

Regarding the Myanmar Coup. VOI editorial team continues to monitor the political situation in one of the ASEAN member countries. Civilian casualties continue to fall. Readers can follow news about the Myanmar military coup by tapping this link.