Allegedly Investigating, The Myanmar Court For The Filmmaker Of Japanese Documentaries 10 Years In Prison

JAKARTA - A court in military-controlled Myanmar has sentenced Japanese documentary filmmakers to 10 years in prison for violating the law of incitement and communications, a Japanese Foreign Ministry official said Thursday.

Toru Kubota, 26, was arrested in July in a protest in Yangon City. At that time, he was reported to have faced charges of violating immigration laws and pushing for dissent against the ruling military.

Wednesday, Kubota was sentenced to three years in prison for sedition and seven years for violating telecommunications laws, the ministry official said, citing lawyers for the filmmaker.

However, he is expected to serve a sentence simultaneously, media in Myanmar reported, citing the Myanmar military regime's communications team.

A court hearing on alleged violations of immigration control laws is scheduled to take place on October 12, Japanese ministry officials said.

"We have asked Myanmar authorities for the initial release of Kubota, and we intend to continue to do so," the official said.

There has been no comment from Myanmar's military spokesman on this matter. Meanwhile, they said Myanmar's court was independent and those arrested were undergoing legal proceedings.

Myanmar experienced domestic conflict after a military coup on February 1 last year. The regime arrested thousands of people including politicians, bureaucrats, students, journalists and foreigners to quell dissent.

Last year, a freelance Japanese journalist was arrested for being charged with spreading false news in his coverage of anti-coup protests. He was later released, with the junta saying it was a confession of Myanmar's close ties to Japan.