Danny Fenster, a US journalist, was confined to 11 years in jail by a Myanmar military court.
Fenster was found guilty of breaking immigration laws, forming an illegal association, and encouraging dissent against the military. In addition, he was charged with sedition and terrorism earlier this week, both of which carry a maximum jail sentence.
On November 16, his trial on the new charges will begin. In May, Fenster, 37, was detained at Yangon International Airport while working as the managing editor of the online publication Frontier Myanmar.
He is one of the dozens of local journalists detained since the February military coup. Fenster previously worked for Myanmar Now, an independent news site that has been critical of the military since the coup.
“The charges were all based on allegations that he worked for the outlawed media outlet Myanmar Now. His sentencing comes months after a Japanese freelance journalist was jailed in Myanmar and accused of distributing false information.
Yuki Kitazumi was one of the few foreign reporters in Myanmar, reporting for several major Japanese news agencies. He broke the law, according to Myanmar police, but he was released because Japan had requested it. The United States has pressed the military government to release him, but a military spokesman insisted that Fenster be kept in custody.
In February, Myanmar’s military leaders took power after the government National League of Democracy was defeated in a landslide election.
It required it had no choice but to phase the coup due to widespread election fraud, even though the country’s election commission said there was no support for these claims. The news of the coup sparked massive civilian protests across the country, which the military brutally dispersed.
According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, at least 1,178 people have been killed, and 7,355 have been arrested, charged, or sentenced in a crackdown on dissent since then. So far, approximately 80 local journalists have been detained for their reporting. According to the AAPP, 50 of them are still being held in custody, while the other half have been arrested.
Source: BBC news
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