Reuters journalist Wa Lone departs Insein court after his verdict announcement in Yangon, Myanmar, September 3, 2018.
The U.K. has called for the immediate release of two Reuters journalists imprisoned by a Myanmar court for reporting on the atrocities targeting Rohingya minority in the country.
“As our Ambassador to Burma [Myanmar], who attended the hearing, has said, we are extremely disappointed with this verdict and sentencing,” British Prime Minister Theresa May’s spokesman said Monday.
“And we call for the journalists to be released immediately. In any democracy, journalists must be free to carry out their jobs without fear or intimidation. This verdict has undermined freedom of the media in Myanmar,” he added.
U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet called on Myanmar to free two Reuters journalists jailed on Monday for their reporting of the Rohingya crisis, as well as all other journalists detained for exercising their freedom of expression.A Myanmar judge earlier on Monday found the two Reuters journalists guilty of breaching a law on state secrets and jailed them for seven years, in a landmark case seen as a test of progress towards democracy in the Southeast Asian country."Their conviction follow a legal process that clearly breached international standards," Bachelet said in a statement. "It sends a message to all journalists in Myanmar that they cannot operate fearlessly, but must rather make a choice to either self-censor or risk prosecution." UK's Hunt to visit Myanmar, raise case of jailed Reuters journalists'Myanmar jailing of Reuters journalists harsh setback for media freedom'European Union demands freedom for two Reuters journalists jailed in MyanmarMyanmar slaps prison sentences on two Reuters journalists
UN human rights chief Bachelet urges Myanmar to free Reuters reporters
A Myanmar court on Monday sentenced two Reuters news agency journalists to seven years in jail for investigation into the murder of Rohingya Muslim men by security officials.
Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, are charged with breaching the Official Secrets Act, which carries a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison during the investigation into the murder of 10 Rohingya men in the western Rakhine state.
Judge Ye Lwin of Yangon’s Northern District Court said each journalist was handed a seven-year imprisonment as they were found guilty of obtaining and possessing classified documents which they possibly transferred to the insurgent groups that are fighting against the government.
British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said on Monday he would visit Myanmar soon and would raise the case of two Reuters journalists jailed for their reporting of the Rohingya crisis.A Myanmar judge has found Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo guilty of breaching a law on state secrets and jailed them for seven years."Imprisoning journalists who write about inconvenient truths is an unconscionable blow to press freedom, and indeed everyone's freedom. Will be raising the extremely serious case of the two Reuters journalists on my forthcoming visit to Burma (Myanmar)," Hunt said on Twitter. 'Myanmar jailing of Reuters journalists harsh setback for media freedom'European Union demands freedom for two Reuters journalists jailed in MyanmarMyanmar slaps prison sentences on two Reuters journalists
UK's Hunt to visit Myanmar, raise case of jailed Reuters journalists
Wa Lone said the ruling is unfair and that he believed in "democracy and freedom of speech".
Also expressing his "extreme disappointment", British Foreign Office Minister for Asia and the Pacific Mark Field said the journalists were sentenced for nothing more than "doing their jobs".
"They provided valuable reporting on abhorrent human rights violations in Rakhine State, and I have consistently called for their immediate release, including directly with the Burmese government," Field said.
"This is a bad day for Burma, but those of us who have consistently called for Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo’s freedom will not give up," he added.
The German government's human rights commissioner on Monday called the conviction of two Reuters journalists in Myanmar for their reporting of the Rohingya crisis "a harsh setback" for freedom of the press in the southeastern Asia country.A Myanmar judge has found Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo guilty of breaching a law on state secrets and jailed them for seven years.Baerbel Kofler, human rights commissioner for the German government, said she was crushed to hear the news and expressed concern that the conviction would intimidate other journalists. "The two journalists ... did nothing but support the search for truth in Rakhine (state)," she said. European Union demands freedom for two Reuters journalists jailed in MyanmarMyanmar slaps prison sentences on two Reuters journalists
'Myanmar jailing of Reuters journalists harsh setback for media freedom'
London-based Burma Human Rights Network (BHRN) said the convictions of the journalists “signals another failure by the National League for Democracy administration to protect human rights and press freedom in Burma, and stands in stark contrast to the impunity enjoyed by the military for the crimes that these reporters exposed.”
“Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo’s sentence shows how the Burmese state -- under Aung San Suu Kyi’s leadership -- punishes those who expose the military’s atrocities,” said BHRN Executive Director Kyaw Win.
“This verdict must be overturned, and justice and accountability served in the case of the war crimes that these brave journalists reported on,” he added.
Two Myanmar journalists of the Reuters on Monday have been given seven years jail sentence for investigation into the murder of Rohingya Muslim men by the security officials in western Rakhine state.Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, are charged with breaching the Official Secrets Act, which carries a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison during the investigation into the murder of 10 Rohingya men in Rakhine state.Judge Ye Lwin of Yangon’s Northern District Court said each journalist was handed a seven-year imprisonment as they were found guilty of obtaining and possessing the state secret documents which they possibly transferred to the insurgent groups that are fighting against the government.Wa Lone said the ruling is unfair as they just did what journalists supposed to do during investigation into the unlawful killings.“We did nothing wrong, and we have no fear. We still believe in democracy and freedom of speech,” said Wa Lone.“We will fight for justice until the end,” he said.Defense lawyer Than Zaw Aung said the ruling is unfair. “We will do everything legally.”'Myanmar jailing of Reuters journalists harsh setback for media freedom'European Union demands freedom for two Reuters journalists jailed in MyanmarCriticismThe United States embassy, after the conviction, called on Myanmar to release the journalists immediately, saying it is “a major setback” to the Government of Myanmar's stated goal of expanding democratic freedoms.“The clear flaws in this case raise serious concerns about rule of law and judicial independence in Myanmar,” it said in a statement.The ruling also drew criticism from local and international rights groups.New York-based Human Rights Watch said it marks “a new low for press freedom and further backsliding on rights” under the government led by State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi, who was accused of failing to stop the military atrocities on Rohingya Muslims.“The outrageous convictions of the Reuters journalists show Myanmar courts’ willingness to muzzle those reporting on military atrocities,” said HRW’s Asia director Brad Adams.The journalists were investigating the massacre of 10 Rohingya men in a remote village in Rakhine state last September. Military had admitted soldiers were involved in the killing just days after the arrest of Reuters journalists in December.After their arrest, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo were held incommunicado for two weeks, during which they were deprived of sleep and forced to kneel for hours during interrogation, according to the reporters and their lawyers.“These convictions won’t hide the horrors against the Rohingya from the world,” said Adams.“They merely reveal the precarious state of free speech in the country and the urgent need for international action to free these journalists.”Reporters Without Borders (RSF) also condemned the ruling and reiterated its call for the immediate release of the reporters.“The conviction of Kyaw Soe Oo and Wa Lone is a terrible blow to press freedom in Myanmar,” RSF Secretary-General Christophe Deloire said in a statement.“As the justice system clearly followed orders in this case, we call on the country’s most senior officials, starting with government leader Aung San Suu Kyi, to free these journalists, whose only crime was to do their job. After a farcical prosecution, this outrageous verdict clearly calls into question Myanmar’s transition to democracy,” he added.Video: Families, diplomats 'disappointed' after Myanmar journalists verdict
Myanmar slaps prison sentences on two Reuters journalists
Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo uncovered the murder of 10 Rohingya men buried in a mass grave in Inn Din village; their reporting demonstrated how the murders were systematically carried out by Burmese security forces, the statement from BHRN said.
The convictions of two journalists drew a large scale international criticism as well.
The U.S., the EU and various international human rights organizations denounced the imprisonment of the journalists and urged for their release.