Myanmar court hears appeal of convicted Reuters journalists
211 views · Published 29 December 2018 · 2:51 · Indexed 25 September 2026
Channel: AP Archive · 2018 · News & Politics
(24 Dec 2018) A court in Myanmar has heard an appeal filed by lawyers for two Reuters journalists sentenced to seven years in prison on charges of illegal possession of official documents, a case that has drawn worldwide criticism. The two journalists had been reporting last year on the brutal crackdown by security forces on the Rohingya population in Myanmar's Rakhine state, when some 700,000 fled to Bangladesh to escape the violence of a government counterinsurgency campaign. The court announced a ruling would be issued next month after submissions were made Monday by both the prosecution and lawyers for Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, who said they were framed by police but were convicted in September. Speaking to reporters on Monday after the hearing, lawyer Than Zaw Aung, said "It can clearly be seen, if the judges review the case carefully, that this was a trap set by the police." He added, "I hope our country's freedom of expression and rule of law will be honoured once the appeals court reviews the lower court's decision." The case drew worldwide attention as an example of how democratic reforms in long-isolated Myanmar have stalled under leader Aung San Suu Kyi's civilian government, which took power in 2016. Earlier this year Suu Kyi defended the imprisonment, which was widely condemned by the United Nations and various international governments. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APArchives Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/APNews/ You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/d23a649538c5d6fcc2e803d315f357f3
