YANGON, Myanmar: Japanese documentary filmmaker Toru Kubota, who was arrested in July at a protest demonstration in Myanmar’s main city of Yangon, has been sentenced to an additional three years in prison on charges of violating immigration laws.
With this ruling, the 26-year-old’s jail term has been extended to 10 years.
Last week, Kubota was sentenced to three years in prison for sedition and seven years for violating a law on telecommunications. His prison term from those two sentences handed down last week comes to seven years, as they are to be served concurrently, a Japanese foreign ministry official said.
“The Japanese government will keep on asking the Myanmar side for an early release of Mr Kubota,” the official said.
The junta claims Myanmar’s courts are independent and those arrested are receiving due process.
Myanmar has been trapped in a spiral of violence since the military overthrew an elected government last year. The junta has arrested thousands, including politicians, bureaucrats, students, journalists and foreigners, as it attempts to end dissent.
Japanese firms and multinationals have faced pressure to pull out of investments in Myanmar that are perceived to benefit the military, though some delayed projects are now resuming.