Myanmar police file new charge against Aung San Suu Kyi

Yangon: Police in Myanmar filed a new charge against ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi, her lawyer said Tuesday, which may allow her to be held indefinitely without trial.

Lawyer Khin Maung Zaw told reporters after meeting with a judge in the capital, Naypyitaw, that Suu Kyi has been charged with violating Article 25 of the Natural Disaster Management Law, which has been used to prosecute people who have broken Coronavirus restrictions.

Suu Kyi, who was ousted in a military coup on Feb. 1, has already been charged with possessing walkie-talkies that were imported without being registered.

The maximum punishment for the COVID-19 violation is three years' imprisonment.

However, the new charge may allow her to be held indefinitely without trial because a change in the Penal Code instituted by the junta last week permits detention without court permission.

Groups of demonstrators turned out in Yangon and other cities on Tuesday to protest the coup and demand that Suu Kyi and members of her ousted government be freed from detention.

In Yangon, police blocked off the street in front of the Central Bank, which protesters have targeted amid speculation online that the military is seeking to seize money from them.

Buddhist monks demonstrated outside the UN's local office.

The protests are taking place in defiance of an order banning gatherings of five or more people. Around 3,000 demonstrators mainly students returned to the streets in Mandalay, carrying posters of Suu Kyi and shouting for the return of democracy.

On Monday in Mandalay, soldiers and police violently broke up a gathering of more than 1,000 protesters in front of the Myanmar Economic Bank.

They attacked the protesters with slingshots and sticks, and police could be seen aiming long guns into the air amid sounds that resembled gunfire. Local media reported rubber bullets were fired into the crowd and that a few people were injured.

Peaceful demonstrations against Myanmar's military takeover resumed Tuesday, following violence against protesters a day earlier by security forces and after internet access was blocked for a second straight night.