'This trial is clearly the opening salvo in an overall strategy to neuter Suu Kyi and the National League for Democracy party as a force that can challenge military rule in the future,' the deputy Asia director for Human Rights Watch said.
Human Rights Watch has called the allegations against Myanmar's ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi"bogus and politically motivated" in an effort to nullify the electoral victory of National League for Democracy lawmakers and prevent Suu Kyi from running for office again.
Protesters make a three-finger salute as they take part in a flash mob demonstration against the military coup in Yangon, Myanmar, on June 13.
Two other more serious charges against Suu Kyi are being handled separately: one for breaching the colonial-era Official Secrets Act, which carries a maximum 14-year prison term, and another for bribery, which has a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and a fine. The army justified its coup by alleging the government failed to properly investigate accusations of voting irregularities. Since then it has said it has found evidence of fraud—an assertion contested by the independent Asian Network for Free Elections and many others. Junta officials have threatened to dissolve the National League for Democracy and any conviction for Suu Kyi could see her barred from politics.
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