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Suu Kyi speaks with lawyer via video call, requests in-person meeting 

Ousted State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi spoke with her lawyer via video call on Wednesday, the first such meeting she has been allowed since she was detained in a late night raid on February 1. 

Min Min Soe was called by police in Naypyitaw’s Zabuthiri township to attend the video call at 11am. Yu Ya Chit, another lawyer representing Suu Kyi, was also called but was not able to attend in time. 

Officers were present throughout the 10-minute conversation. Suu Kyi told Min Min Soe there were also officers listening in on her end, and questioned whether their presence was in accordance with the law, the lawyer said. 

Lawyer Min Min Soe speaks to reporters outside the Dekkhina District court on March 5 after a court hearing for NLD patron Win Htein (Myanmar Now)

Suu Kyi, 75, was in good health and said she appreciated the help she was receiving.

“She said meeting with us via video link was not appropriate and wanted to meet with us in person. She also said she had requested that the meeting be allowed in person,” Min Min Soe told Myanmar Now.

Suu Kyi’s next hearing is scheduled for Thursday, when lawyers Khin Maung Zaw and Kyi Win from the NLD’s legal team plan to submit power of attorney applications so they can join the defence team.

Suu Kyi, like most of the more than 2,600 people detained by the junta since the coup, has been denied proper access to legal counsel.

Last week a Naypyitaw court postponed a video hearing scheduled for her and detained President Win Myint, citing a lack of internet access. 

The junta has cut off access to mobile internet and blocked public wifi networks nationwide in a bid to disrupt communications within the anti-coup movement.

Another hearing scheduled for Suu Kyi and Win Myint for March 15 was postponed for the same reason.

The regime has hit Suu Kyi with four charges, including one for illegally importing walkie-talkies and another for breaching Covid-19 restrictions during the 2020 election campaign.

Wednesday’s meeting came as Yangon erupted in noise protests following news that a crew of journalists from CNN had arrived in the city for a visit choreographed by the military.

Drivers honked horns as people banged pots and pans and flashed three-finger salutes, a show of renewed defiance even after the regime spent weeks murdering hundreds of anti-coup protesters. 

 

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