Myanmar is set to hand down its verdict tomorrow in the case of Aung Sung Suu Kyi, the face of government opposition in the country. Suu Kyi could serve up to five years in prison if convicted, and according to her lawyers in an interview with the Associated Press this week, the chances an outright acquittal are slim.
“‘I don’t want to guess what the verdict will be,’ Nyan Win told reporters. Without directly calling Suu Kyi’s case politically motivated, he noted: ‘I have never seen any defendant in a political case being set free.’”
For Thailand, a close neighbor and trading partner with Myanmar, the trial comes soon after last week’s ASEAN summit, during which tensions between Myanmar officials and other representatives, including U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, were strained, but perhaps fortunately overshadowed by the North Korean nuclear issue.
Thai Prime Minister Abhisit cancelled a scheduled trip to Myanmar tomorrow due to the timing of the Suu Kyi decision, but only at Myanmar’s request, said a government spokesman.
“The postponement has no connection with Thailand’s role in the discussion of Myanmar’s internal issues at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Ministers Meeting in Phuket earlier this month, he added.”
Needless to say, AP’s Bangkok bureau will be covering the events tomorrow closely, and I hope to post some efforts of that coverage here by tomorrow night.
Later in the day, the United Front for Democracy against Democracy (UDD) publicized plans to converge on Bangkok’s royal park of sorts, continuing a signature drive that they claim tops 1 million signatures already. The group plans to submit the signatures to King Bhumibol on August 7, asking for a royal pardon for ex-Prime Minister Shinawatra.