Danny Fenster, an American journalist arrested while trying to leave Myanmar more than five months ago, is now facing sedition and terrorism charges, according to his lawyer.
The new charges, under Section 124a of the Penal Code and Section 50a of the Counter-Terrorism Law, are just the latest to be added against Fenster, who was originally detained for allegedly inciting unrest against the country’s coup regime.
His lawyer, Than Zaw Aung, said the new charges were filed at the Western District Court in Yangon on Tuesday.
“I only learned about the charges officially today. He is facing a total of five cases now,” he told Myanmar Now.
The sedition and terrorism charges, which both carry maximum sentences of 20 years in prison, are the most serious laid against Fenster so far.
Last week, less than a month after hitting the 37-year-old American citizen with a charge of violating the colonial-era Unlawful Associations Act, the regime added an immigration offence to the list of his alleged crimes.
Fenster was working as managing editor of the Yangon-based publication Frontier Myanmar when he was taken into custody as he was about to board a flight to the US on May 24.
However, his lawyer confirmed last month that his arrest was related to a previous stint with Myanmar Now, where he worked as a copy editor from mid-2019 until July 2020.
Myanmar Now released a statement after Fenster’s arrest clarifying that his work with the outlet was limited to editing English-language copy and did not involve senior editorial duties. It also stressed that he had no association with Myanmar Now after leaving the organization.
Despite this, Fenster was reportedly included on a list of Myanmar Now’s “responsible editors” submitted to the regime by the Information Ministry after it rescinded the outlet’s publication license for its coverage of the February 1 coup.
According to his lawyer, Fenster testified about his employment with Frontier Myanmar and Myanmar Now during a hearing at a special prison court on Tuesday
“He said he was not aware that he was on the list of Myanmar Now’s editors as the Information Ministry claimed, and that he was not even aware of the existence of such a list,” said Than Zaw Aung.
Fenster’s wife and two staff members from Frontier Myanmar also testified on his behalf at Tuesday’s hearing, the lawyer added.
Fenster is scheduled to have court hearings every day this week. A verdict in the incitement, unlawful association, and immigration cases is expected on Monday, according to Than Zaw Aung.
The lawyer added that the stress of the ordeal has been affecting his client’s mental health.
“He said he is taking medicine because he’s been suffering from depression,” he told Myanmar Now.
(Editor’s Note: This article has been corrected to clarify the proceedings expected to take place in the coming days.)
