» 02/26/2010 10:40 MYANMAR The Supreme Court upholds sentence for Aung San Suu Kyi The judges rejected her lawyers arguments. The "Lady" will remain confined until November and will not participate in elections. The lawyer for the Nobel Peace Laureate appeals to the Minister for Justice. NLD spokesman: The ruling confirms that the vote will not be "inclusive, just and free."
Yangon (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Burma's Supreme Court has confirmed the sentence to 18 months house arrest for Aung San Suu Kyi. This morning, the judges rejected the appeal advanced by the lawyers of the opposition leader, who will remain confined until November, the natural expiration of her terms of incarceration. A decision that in the end excludes the Nobel Peace Prize Winner from the general election to be held by the military junta in 2010 and taking place - even if the date is not fixed - by October.
Nyan Win, Suu Ki’s lawyer confirms that "the Supreme Court rejected our arguments against the ruling” and announces that he intends to appeal – as a last chance - to the Burmese Ministry of Justice within a couple of days.
Aung San Suu Kyi has spent 14 of the last 20 years under house arrest. In August a court in Yangon - in a "farce" trial – extended her house arrest for another 18 months, because she hosted a U.S. citizen who had entered her house. The case immediately appeared to be an excuse to keep the Nobel Peace Laureate on the margins and exclude her from the elections.
Khin Maung Swe, spokesman for the National League for Democracy (NLD), said that "the decision [of the judges] shows that the elections will not be truly inclusive, free and fair. With our leaders in custody, the party remains in a difficult position. "
