Myanmar Sentences 14 Democracy Supporters

[Coventina]

Source: New York Times

BANGKOK -- Myanmar’s military leadership continued its crackdown on dissent Tuesday, handing down prison sentences of 65 years to 14 pro-democracy activists.

The convictions came a day after a blogger was sentenced to 20 years for “creating public alarm,” among other offenses.

Tuesday’s sentences were delivered by judges operating within the compound of Insein prison, which holds many of the country’s estimated 2,000 political prisoners. Family members spoke to news agency reporters in Yangon, the country’s largest city, and said that they and defense lawyers were not allowed into the courtroom.

(snip)

Some of the activists were reportedly veterans of 1988 pro-democracy uprising that nearly succeeded in toppling the country’s military leaders. The activists were arrested in August 2007 in the early stages of the protests that swelled into mass demonstrations led by monks that were violently put down.




Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/12/world/asia/12myanmar.html?hp