Journalists Attend Suu Kyi Trial

By SAW YAN NAING
The Irrawaddy News

Ten journalists were allowed inside the courtroom on Wednesday to cover the trial of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, said journalists in Rangoon.

Five journalists working for foreign news media were chosen by lot. Three were Japanese journalists and two work for Reuters and Agence France-Presse.

Riot police officers stand guard at a road block near Insein Prison in the northern suburb of Rangoon. (Photo: AP)

The remaining five were chosen by Burmese authorities. Sources believe they represent state-backed newspapers and publications associated with the regime.

A journalist who was chosen to report on the trial said it was not clear whether the authorities will allow the journalists to bring recorders and cameras into the courtroom. In the past, he said, journalists have not been able to use recorders or cameras when covering sensitive events.

A Burmese journalist in Rangoon confirmed that one journalist from the Myanmar Times was chosen to cover the trial.

Associated Press writers, who participated in the draw, lost out to the luck of the draw, sources said.

Wednesday is day three of the trial of Suu Kyi, who has been charged with violating the terms of her house arrest by allowing a US citizen, John William Yettaw, to stay overnight at her compound on Inya Lake. If convicted, she could be sentenced to a maximum of five years in prison.

Yettaw, 53, who allegedly swam across the lake to the compound, which is under 24-hour guard, is also on trial for violating Burmese security laws and immigration laws, along with two housekeepers who live with Suu Kyi.