BURMA: OPPOSITION LAWYERS JAILED

C O N F I D E N T I A L RANGOON 000873 SIPDIS STATE FOR EAP AND IO; PACOM FOR FPA E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/09/2018 TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM BM SUBJECT: BURMA: OPPOSITION LAWYERS JAILED REF: A. RANGOON 860 ¶B. RANGOON 865 Classified By: Pol Officer Sean O'Neill for Reasons 1.4 (b) & (d) ¶1. (C) Opposition lawyer U Aung Thein's wife confirmed that on November 7 her husband and fellow lawyer U Khin Maung Shein were sentenced by a Supreme Court deputy justice to four months in prison for contempt of court after they criticized the lack of due process in their client's trials (Ref A). The two men began serving their sentence at Insein prison on November 8. ¶2. (C) An associate in U Aung Thein's law office explained that the case was referred to the Supreme Court by the lower-court judge who had originally charged the men with contempt (Ref A). The case was decided by a Supreme Court justice because both lawyers are admitted before the Supreme Court. U Aung Thein's associate noted that because the sentence was handed down by a Supreme Court justice, the two lawyers have no avenue of appeal. He added that normally most lawyers charged with contempt are only fined, and commented that prison time is extremely rare. ¶3. (C) U Aung Thein's and U Khin Maung Shein's sentencing brings to three the number of lawyers the regime has jailed for contempt of court in the past three weeks. A fourth, Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min, remains in hiding after a court issued an arrest warrant for him on the same charge (reftels). DINGER