The first thing the illegal military government did when it took over by force on February 1, 2021, was to arrest and detain Myanmar’s government led by Aung San Suu Kyi. Ms Suu Kyi has now been charged and faces the possibility of an unjust life sentence. Hannah Beech reported this development in The New York Times. Here is an excerpt:

For the first time since Myanmar’s military locked her up in a pre-dawn raid as part of its coup on Feb. 1, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of Myanmar’s ousted civilian government, was seen in person on Monday when she sat briefly at a court hearing.

The short appearance at a special court in Naypyidaw, the Southeast Asian country’s capital, was also the first time that most of her legal team had caught a glimpse of their famous client. They have been defending her against a raft of criminal charges that the United Nations and foreign governments say are clearly politically motivated. Many of the country’s elected leaders have been jailed.

In a 30-minute meeting with her lawyers before the hearing, Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi, who had previously appeared by video link, seemed healthy and resolute, if unclear about just how Myanmar had changed since the coup, a member of her legal team said. Since the putsch, the military has imposed a reign of terror, isolating the country once more from the international community.

Read the full article here.