ASEAN Regional Coalition to #StopDigitalDictatorship found dead in custody after his arrest in July 2022. Investigation Department, which is supposedly The military junta had arrested him on charges of responsible for extracting credible evidence.141 This storing weapons in his home, although no weapons situation means that those arbitrarily detained are were found. The activist’s family was informed of further denied from exercising their fundamental his death by a hospital ten hours after his arrest. rights to a fair trial, including their right to challenge A member of a charity funeral service, who was evidence. This is all the more alarming because, as involved in transporting the body from the hospital we have seen, the military junta frequently uses posts to a religious centre, said: “We did not observe any on social media as evidence. At the same time, the superficial wounds on the body, but I noticed that SAC sets up military courts to try people. In Yangon his chest was largely sutured, as in a post-mortem and Mandalay Townships, regional military officials operation”. This hastily closed wound supports the have been given full executive and judicial powers. theory of a particularly violent interrogation that may The court is usually composed of three members have crossed the line, followed by a subsequent of the military. In summary, both the few remaining attempt at concealment. A hospital resident said civilian courts and the military courts are illegitimate, that the lack of external injuries suggested that Aye all entirely controlled by the military junta.142 Kyaw had died as a result of extreme torture. Sadly, Aye Kyaw is not the first to lose his life in this way. Indeed, the modus operandi is very reminiscent of that of Soe Naing, who died as a result of injuries sustained during interrogation in December 2021, with those responsible also attempting to conceal their crime by leaving his body outside a hospital. It is crucial to note that the military instructed the journalist’s family not to share any details about his Before the coup, defence lawyers were required to respect the rights and regulations set out in the Constitution, Courts Manual, Evidence Act, AntiCorruption Law, and Union Judiciary Law. In practice, defence lawyers generally followed at least some of these rights and regulations. Since February 2021, the recent amendments to the Bar Council Act aim to control the legal profession by allowing the death or burial on Facebook.139 military to choose and appoint lawyers according Before the coup, criminal trials were held in civil courts. records lawyers without their knowledge and airs They were supposed to comply with the regulations the footage on national media, falsely claiming set out in the Constitution, Courts Manual, Evidence adherence to fair trial principles. In addition, defence Act, Union Judiciary Law, and case law. The courts lawyers, if any, frequently find it difficult to challenge followed these regulations, at least to some extent. 140 the evidence presented in court, because of the risk Since the coup, by setting up courts within the prisons involved. Presenting contradictory evidence or simply to try those arbitrarily arrested after the coup, the opposing the junta raises the likelihood of lawyers State Administration Council (SAC) has destroyed facing arrest. As a result, there is almost a 100% all forms of due process, including by preventing conviction rate, and the most severe sentence is observers from attending the hearings. Each district almost always imposed on the person found guilty.143 court set up within the prisons is headed by a single The few courageous defence lawyers who persist judge. Forced to handle a number of cases well in practising their profession justly are subjected to beyond their capacity, with more than 100 cases a continuous harassment by the military junta and, to day, these judges are also faced with a case overload. some extent, face severe persecution. For instance, Moreover, physical evidence is rarely presented in lawyer Ywet Nu Aung was arrested and sentenced court, while electronic evidence is generally used in December 2022 in a junta-controlled court to 15 as it is, without going through the junta-run Criminal years’ imprisonment with hard labour, after being 204 to its preferences. On occasion, the military junta Dawn of Digital Dictatorship: Weaponizing the Law Against Online Speech in Southeast Asia