SINGAPORE — A court in junta-controlled Myanmar has sentenced a former British ambassador and her husband to one year in prison for violating immigration laws, as the military regime has continued to resist international pressure since seizing power in a coup last year.
Vicky Bowman, a British citizen living in the Southeast Asian country, was convicted because she resided at a different address – a property owned by her husband – than the one listed on her official documents, according to the junta. Her husband, Htein Lin, a Burmese national, was convicted of aiding and abetting her. The couple was arrested on August 24.
Thousands of people have been jailed since the February 1 coup last year that ended the country’s decades-long transition to democracy. In July, four men – including a former MP and a prominent pro-democracy activist – were executed after being convicted on terrorism charges, prompting widespread international condemnation. Western governments, including the US and UK, have imposed sanctions on the junta and army-related companies since the coup, but the military has shown no sign of changing tack.
The most prominent prisoner is the country’s ousted civilian leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, who was arrested on the day of the coup and later charged with at least 18 offences. Ms Suu Kyi, 77, was convicted in months-long closed-door hearings on several of those charges, including corruption, inciting riots and illegally importing walkie-talkies. On Friday she was found guilty of voter fraud and had her sentence extended by a further three years to a total of 20 years, according to a person familiar with her case.
One of her advisers, Australian economist Sean Turnell, has been jailed for more than a year as he faces trial for breaching an official colonial-era secrecy law.
Ms Bowman was the UK Ambassador to Myanmar from 2002 to 2006. Since 2013 she has been the director of the Myanmar Center for Responsible Business, a non-profit initiative that advises investors on human rights issues in the country. She is fluent in Burmese.
Her husband, Mr. Htein, is an artist who became internationally known for works he secretly produced while a political prisoner under a former military regime.
Vicky Bowman’s husband Htein Lin – who was also convicted in the case – in Yangon, Myanmar in 2015.
Photo: Romeo Gacad/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
A spokesman for Britain’s Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office said Britain would continue to support Ms Bowman and her family until her case was resolved.
More than 15,000 people have been arrested since the coup and more than 12,000 of them remain in detention, according to the non-profit organization for political prisoners. The group says more than 2,200 people have been killed – some tortured in custody and others gunned down – by authorities trying to quell pro-democracy protests in the months following the coup.
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