Myanmar's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi has not had any lawyers listed for an upcoming court hearing in her Official Secrets Act case, her top lawyer said on Friday, Reuters reported.
Lawyer Khing Mong Zaw said that the Supreme Court has set a hearing date of June 23 in the case filed by the military junta against five people, including Suu Kyi, for violating the Official Secrets Act. But no lawyer has been listed to represent the defendants in court. The defendants themselves have been listed to represent the court.
Suu Kyi's top lawyer, Khin Maung Zaw, has expressed concern over the incident. "We are concerned that they (the defendants) will not have any legal representation in court. There will be no transparency in the hearing," he said.
Reuters was unable to obtain a statement from the Supreme Court or a spokesman for the military junta on the allegations made by Suu Kyi's lawyer. There was also no explanation for why the case would go directly to the Supreme Court for a hearing. If the Supreme Court rules, there will be no opportunity to appeal.
The junta has filed multiple charges against Suu Kyi, 75, including a serious one under the Official Secrets Act. If convicted, she could face 14 years in prison.
Suu Kyi is currently under house arrest. She was recently brought before a court in person for the first time in another case.
Myanmar held general elections in November last year. The then ruling party, Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD), won a landslide victory in the elections. Domestic and foreign observers said the elections were fair and impartial. However, the country's military accused the election of rigging and fraud. The then Election Commission rejected the army's allegations.
The country's military staged a military coup on February 1, citing alleged election fraud. They seized power by overthrowing Suu Kyi's elected government. At the same time, they arrested the country's civilian leaders, including Suu Kyi. The Myanmar military declared a state of emergency in the country.
Immediately after the military coup, the country's pro-democracy protesters began protests. So far, more than 800 protesters have been killed by the junta's security forces in these protests against military rule. Many more have been injured. In addition, thousands of protesters have been arrested.
