Senior National League for Democracy (NLD) patron Win Htein was indicted on a sedition charge by a court inside a Naypyitaw detention centre on Friday, according to his lawyer.
Win Htein was arrested in Yangon three days after the February 1 coup following media interviews in which he accused military chief Min Aung Hlaing of acting on personal ambition in his seizure of power.
The 79-year-old faces up to 20 years in prison for sedition under Section 124a of the Penal Code.
Defence lawyer Min Min Soe said Win Htein pleaded not guilty to the Dekkhina District Court judge at Friday’s hearing.
“He testified that he said what he needed to say because he believed it was his responsibility as a leader of a party in power to act based on the political situation at that time,” she told Myanmar Now.
The plaintiff in Win Htein’s case—chair of the military’s Ottara District administration council Aye Lu—said in May that the NLD patron had incited hatred, contempt or disaffection against the government, or in this case the coup council, in a letter of appeal directed to the public.
Naypyitaw’s Ottara District is where the NLD’s temporary headquarters are located.
The letter the plaintiff was referring to is believed to be the one written by ousted State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and released by the NLD on February 1. In it, she urged the public to “fully oppose” the military coup and “resoundingly resist” it.
The letter by Suu Kyi, who was taken into custody the same day, was signed by Win Htein as a guarantee of its authenticity.
“He pleaded innocent, and said that he was just declaring the party’s stance to all the party members and the public,” lawyer Min Min Soe said.
Win Htein has been held in a Naypyitaw detention centre for the past five months and has been denied bail despite suffering from serious health issues. He was also denied visits from his lawyers until a court hearing in mid-May.
The wheelchair-bound politician, who requires oxygen to help him breathe, suffers from a range of health complications such as hypertension, diabetes, and heart and thyroid diseases.
His next hearing is scheduled for July 31, in which the judge will start hearing testimony from Win Htein.
