 Zaw Win, a lawyer from Pyin Oo Lwin Township, Mandalay Region, was charged under Section 18 for walking down the road from the Pyin Oo Lwin District Court to the Township Court and back in May 2014, shouting slogans through a megaphone demanding the removal of unfair judges and calling for better administration of justice. He walked down the road to the Township Court and back. He is currently detained in Oh-Bo prison while his trial is ongoing. 111  Myat Ko Ko, joint secretary of the NLD in Aunglan Township in Magway Region, was sentenced on 4 July 2014 to one month in prison for staging a solo protest calling for the resignation of a minister. “INCITEMENT” UNDER SECTION 505(B) OF THE PENAL CODE Another common tool used to criminalize freedom of expression is Section 505(b) of Myanmar’s Penal Code, which provides up to two years’ imprisonment for anyone who “makes, publishes or circulates any statement, rumour or report […] with intent to cause, or which is likely to cause, fear or alarm to the public or to any section of the public whereby any person may be induced to commit an offence against the State or against the public tranquility.” Such undefined provisions do not fall within the restrictions on the right to freedom of expression that are permitted under international human rights law and standards; in particular acts against “the public tranquillity” is a vague term that allows the authorities to use Section 505(b) without clear limits to charge individuals who criticize the government. Section 505(b) has long been used by the Myanmar authorities to detain, prosecute and imprison peaceful political activists. However Amnesty International’s research indicates that in the last two years, use of this law to charge peaceful activists has become particularly common. The vast majority of individuals currently detained or imprisoned in Myanmar have been charged with 505(b) related offences. Section 505(b) is usually used alongside other criminal charges, in particular those that relate to peaceful protests. As highlighted in Chapter 3, offences under Section 505(b) are non-bailable, and when included in the list of charges against activists allow the authorities to detain leaders of protests and other movements. Of the cases examined for the report, in which charges had been brought under Section 505(b) and in which a verdict had been given, most individuals were sentenced to between one and two years’ imprisonment. UNLAWFUL ASSEMBLIES UNDER SECTIONS 141-149 OF THE PENAL CODE Until the start of 2015, the Myanmar authorities relied heavily on the Peaceful Assembly Act to arrest and imprison peaceful protesters. However, since the start of 2015, peaceful protesters have increasingly been charged under Penal Code provisions criminalizing “unlawful assemblies”. These provisions allow for longer terms of imprisonment than the Peaceful Assembly Act. Section 141 of the Penal Code outlines what is considered an “unlawful assembly”. According to the Penal Code, these are assemblies of five or more people whose “common object” can range from “resist[ing] the execution of any law, or of any legal process”; “commit[ing] any mischief or criminal trespass, or other offence”, using criminal force to deprive a person the enjoyment of a right of way; and other vaguely worded 111 See Chapter 3, Prolonged trials, p25, NEW EXPRESSION MEETS OLD REPRESSION ENDING THE CYCLE OF POLITICAL ARRESTS AND IMPRISONMENT IN MYANMAR Amnesty International 37