Myanmar slams foreign interference over Suu Kyi

YANGON (Reuters) - Army-ruled Myanmar lashed out at foreign critics of Aung San Suu Kyi’s trial on Thursday,
accusing them of meddling in its affairs and denying the prosecution of the opposition leader was a political or
human rights issue.
Deputy Foreign Minister Maung Myint rebuked his counterparts from Southeast Asia and Europe at a meeting in
Cambodia, saying the trial that could jail Suu Kyi, 63, for up to five years was an “internal legal” issue.
“It’s not political. It’s not a human rights issue, so we don’t accept the pressure and interference from abroad,”
Maung Myint told the ministers at the Phnom Penh meeting.
It was the military regime’s strongest reaction yet to international outrage at Suu Kyi’s trial on charges that she
violated her house arrest by harbouring an uninvited American intruder in early May.
The Nobel laureate denies the charges, which critics say are aimed at keeping her in detention during an
election next year that they say will entrench the generals’ power after nearly a half century of military rule.
The trial was adjourned to Monday after the court heard from lawyer Kyi Win, Suu Kyi’s only defence witness
after three others were rejected by the judge without a reason being given.
Activists said it was the latest attempt by the regime to sabotage Suu Kyi’s defence since the trial began nine
days ago.
Nyan Win, one of Suu Kyi’s lawyers, said the court agreed to allow them to meet her privately on Saturday to
discuss her defence. Final arguments are due on Monday.
“If everything goes according to the law, we must win,” he said after Thursday’s closed session inside Insein
prison.
No date for a verdict was set, but a conviction is widely expected in the former Burma, where the courts routinely