INTERNATIONAL: Ousted Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi braced for verdict in incitement trial against the country’s military rulers, the first in a catalogue of cases that could see her jailed for the rest of her life. The democratically elected leader faces years in jail if she is found guilty on charges that also include corruption, fraud and breaking Covid rules.

A court in Myanmar is expected to deliver a verdict on ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Tuesday, for allegedly breaching COVID-19 restrictions during a general election campaign. The verdict will be the first in Suu Kyi's trial. She is facing 11 criminal cases with maximum sentences that total more than a century in jail. Those include corruption and violating the Official Secrets Act.

Suu Kyi's court hearings are being conducted behind closed doors and defence lawyers, the only source of information on the proceedings, are imposed gag orders by the authorities. The Nobel laureate has been detained since the generals ousted her democratically elected government on 1 February.

More than 1,200 people have been killed and over 10,000 arrested in a crackdown on dissent, according to a local monitoring group.

Aung San Suu Kyi faces three years in jail if found guilty of incitement against the military. The charge is one of several those analysts say are aimed at removing the high-profile figure from the political arena for good. The court has been hearing testimony related to the charge of incitement, which is sometimes referred to as sedition. The offence is defined as spreading false or inflammatory information that could disturb public order. But the junta’s plans for Aung San Suu Kyi remain unknown, they add, and authorities could also delay the verdict.

Journalists have been barred from proceedings in the special court in the military-built capital Naypyidaw and her lawyers are banned from speaking to the media.

^{PHOTO: FILE FOOTAGE OF OUSTED MYANMAR LEADER AUNG SAN SUU KYI}