The jailed Rakhine politician Dr Aye Maung has been stripped of his status as an MP and barred from running for office in the future, state media announced on Wednesday.
Aye Maung, the founder of the Arakan National Party (ANP) is serving a 20-year sentence for treason after giving a speech in 2019 in which he said “armed struggle” was one way Rakhine people could regain their sovereignty.
“Burmese people consider Rakhine people as slaves and do not give equal rights to us,” he told the crowd at an event commemorating the fall of the Rakhine kingdom.
“There are only two ways to regain our sovereignty. Some are taking armed struggle,” he added.
His impeachment from his position as a Pyithu Hluttaw MP has been in effect since his conviction in March last year, the Union Election Commission said in a statement.
Lawmakers sentenced to prison terms are automatically removed from their duties under the Pyithu Hluttaw Election Law. And those convicted of treason are barred from future elections, the law says.
It is unclear why the UEC has chosen to make this announcement more than a year after Aye Maung’s conviction.
Aye Maung won a by-election for the Pyithu Hluttaw seat of Ann township in Rakhine in April 2017. He received widespread support from members of the public in Rakhine state following his arrest.
He was arrested along with the writer Wai Hin Aung after they gave speeches at an event in Rathedaung township to mark the 233rd anniversary of the fall of the Rakhine kingdom.
They were initially charged under the Unlawful Association Law but later hit with treason charges.
Their trial spanned 41 hearings. They appealed the verdict three times but were ultimately rejected by the Union Supreme Court.
