Has anything changed?

Myanmar sentences 14 dissidents

BANGKOK: Myanmar's military leadership continued its crackdown on
dissent Tuesday, handing down prison sentences of 65 years to 14
pro-democracy activists.

The convictions came a day after a blogger was sentenced to 20 years
for "creating public alarm," among other offenses.

Tuesday's sentences were delivered by judges operating within the
compound of Insein prison, which holds many of the country's estimated
2,000 political prisoners. Family members spoke to news agency
reporters in Yangon, the country's largest city, and said that they
and defense lawyers were not allowed into the courtroom.

The Irrawaddy Web site, which is based in neighboring Thailand, listed
the names of 14 activists it said were sentenced to the 65-year terms.

Some of the activists were reportedly veterans of 1988 pro-democracy
uprising that nearly succeeded in toppling the country's military
leaders. The activists were arrested in August 2007 in the early
stages of the protests that swelled into mass demonstrations led by
monks that were violently put down.

Relatives of the activists said they were convicted under a wide range
of laws such as the Foreign Exchange Act, which bans Burmese from
holding foreign currency without permission. Other laws reportedly
used were the Video Act and Electronics Act, which require Burmese to
hold permits for various types of ordinary electronic equipment.

One of the best-known examples of the use of these laws was the
sentencing in 1996 of James Nichols, an honorary consul for Norway, to
three years for possession of a fax machine without a permit in his
Yangon home. He died in detention, several months after his conviction
in April 1996. Analysts say the real reason for the conviction
appeared to be his friendship with Aung San Suu Kyi, the democracy
leader who is under house arrest.

Punishments for dissidents have become much harsher in recent years,
according to Win Min, an expert on Burmese politics at Chiang Mai
University in northern Thailand. A decade ago a sentence of 20 years
was considered very unusual, Win Min said. The 65-year sentences
handed down Tuesday are in effect life terms, Win Min said.

"They rule the country by fear and this was a way to give the young
generation fear," Win Min said of the junta. "By giving out long
sentences the new generation will be discouraged from protesting."