8/21/22, 10:24 PM Nationalists Subject Journalist to Devastating Legal Ordeal  Nationalist monk U Wirathu takes part in a pro-military demonstration in Yangon in October 2018 to condemn international attempts to refer Myanmar military leaders to the International Criminal Court over their alleged atrocities against the Rohingya. / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy “For instance, my lawyer asked a very important question of the police witness during the hearing: Why did police accept the case in Mandalay instead of where [the alleged defamation] took place—in Yangon? Would a court summon an accused who lives in Tanintharyi Division’s Dawei to appear in Kachin State’s Putao? If the accused failed to attend the court hearing, would he be jailed?” asked Ko Swe Win. If a plaintiff fails to appear in court, the defendant’s lawyer can request to appear on behalf of his client in a default hearing. Ko Swe Win’s lawyer made such a request, but the court rejected it on Wednesday. Ko Swe Win also claims police failed to follow proper procedure in his case. According to procedure, police from the jurisdiction in which the alleged offense took place are authorized to arrest the suspect. But, in his case, police from Mandalay came down to Yangon and arrested him at the airport. “These points contradict police procedure as well,” Ko Swe Win said. Lawyer Daw Ywet Nu Aung said, “Actually, this case is very simple. We have properly examined the case and found many weak points during the hearings. I hope these points will be taken into consideration in the final judgment.” She said the hearings could drag on for two years if the plaintiff’s witnesses continue to intentionally fail to show up in court. Out of 13 witnesses, three are due to testify in court in the coming weeks. Even monk U Wirathu asked the judge to hold the hearings at the Sangha authority building, instead of in a courtroom. The court rejected the request on Wednesday. Destined to be behind bars Ko Swe Win’s case is not unique. In 2018 alone, 12 journalists were sued under the Telecommunications Law for defaming the state, or prosecuted under the Official Secrets Act. In the highest-profile case, two Reuters journalists, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, were imprisoned for seven years after a one-year trial. A judge rejected their first appeal to the Yangon Divisional Court last Friday. https://www.irrawaddy.com/features/nationalists-subject-journalist-devastating-legal-ordeal.html 4/5