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US citizen John William Yettaw taking a picture of himself before he swam across Inya Lake to Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi's compound in Yangon - Source: Reuters -
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Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was charged with
breaking the terms of her house arrest and faces up to five years
in jail after an American intruder sneaked into her lakeside home,
her party said.
Opposition activists denounced her trial, set to begin on Monday,
as a ploy by the country's junta to keep Suu Kyi, 63, sidelined
ahead of elections in 2010.
Her National League for Democracy (NLD), which won a landslide
election victory in 1990 only to be denied power by the military,
strongly condemned the new charges two weeks before her latest
six-year detention is due to expire on May 27.
The Nobel Peace laureate has spent 13 of the past 19 years in
detention, most of it held virtually incommunicado at her home,
with her telephone line cut, her mail intercepted and visitors
restricted.
She was charged under the Law Safeguarding the State from the
Dangers of the Subversive Elements, which imposes a
three-to-five-year jail term if a detainee violates the
restrictions imposed on them.
The charges stem from a bizarre incident involving US citizen John
William Yettaw, who, according to state media, claimed to have swum
across Inya Lake and spent two days in Suu Kyi's compound earlier
this month.
Yettaw was charged with abetting, or encouraging a violation of the
law, said Aung Thein, one of Suu Kyi's lawyers.
Other reports said he had been charged with entering a restricted
zone and breaking immigration laws, but Aung Thein could not
confirm those charges.
Yettaw was arrested on May 6 as he swam back from Suu Kyi's
home.
US embassy officials were allowed to see him on Wednesday but he
revealed little about his motives.
"We cannot comment. He didn't tell us any details," embassy
spokesman Richard Mei said.
It was apparently the second time that Yettaw - described by state
media as a 53-year-old psychology student and a resident of
Missouri - had tried to meet Suu Kyi at her home.
Suu Kyi's main lawyer, Kyi Win, said Yettaw was told to leave after his first attempt in late 2008.
This time Yettaw refused.
"He said he was so tired and wanted to rest, but she pleaded with
him. Then he slept overnight on the ground floor," Kyi Win told the
Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB).
Grave and concerning
Suu Kyi's detention in a house inside the prison will renew fears
for her health after she was put on an intravenous drip last week
for dehydration and low blood pressure.
Her main doctor, Tin Myo Win, was detained last week and is still
being held at an undisclosed location.
The United Nations has said Suu Kyi's continued house arrest is
illegal under Myanmar law, which permits detention for five
consecutive years before the accused must be freed or face
trial.
Suu Kyi lodged an appeal against her detention after it was
extended last year in an apparent violation of the law.
The junta denied the appeal, saying they could hold her for a
sixth year.
"The regime filed these charges to extend her detention beyond the
six years," said Aung Din, executive director of the US Campaign
for Burma, a pro-democracy group.
"It is an act of blackmailing the international community,
especially the United States, demanding a ransom to get back an
American citizen and better treatment for Daw Aung San Suu
Kyi."
Australia's Foreign Minister Stephen Smith called the arrest grave
and concerning and demanded her immediate release.
The 10-nation Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), one
of the few groups that allows Myanmar as a member, is "concerned"
by the latest events there, Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva
said.
"We would like to see positive steps being taken according to the
roadmap. It's very important the political process is inclusive,"
he said.
The generals have in the past ignored calls for her release as they
push ahead with a seven-step roadmap to democracy expected to
culminate in the multi-party elections in 2010.
The NLD and Western governments dismiss the roadmap and last year's
army-drafted constitution as a cover for the generals to cement
their grip on power.
