Myanmar junta charges Suu Kyi with fraud during 2020 polls

Myanmar's junta has charged ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi with electoral fraud during 2020 polls that her party won in a landslide. According to  state media report on Tuesday. Suu Kyi was accused of "election fraud and lawless actions", Fifteen other officials -- including former president Win Myint and the chairman of the election commission -- faced the same charge, the report added. Detained since the putsch, Suu Kyi, 76, faces a raft of charges including illegally importing walkie talkies, sedition and corruption, and faces decades in jail if convicted. She is already on trial for flouting coronavirus restrictions while campaigning ahead of the election, in which her National League for Democracy party (NLD) trounced a military-aligned party. International observers said the 2020 polls were largely free and fair.

Myanmar has been in turmoil since a military coup in February this year, sparked nationwide protests and a deadly crackdown on dissent. More than 1,250 people have been killed by Myanmar junta security forces since the coup and over 10,000 arrested, according to a local monitoring group. The junta has threatened to dissolve the NLD and last month jailed Win Htein, a close Suu Kyi aide and high-ranking leader, to 20 years on treason charges.