BANGKOK (AP) — A court in military-ruled Myanmar has sentenced U.S. journalist Danny Fenster to 11 years in prison with hard labor.
That’s the maximum penalty under his three charges, despite calls by the United States and rights groups for Fenster’s release.
It was the harshest punishment yet among the seven journalists known to have been convicted since the military ousted an elected government in February.
The 37-year-old from Detroit has been detained in Myanmar for more than five months as he faced charges that include visa breaches, unlawful association with an illegal group, and incitement under section 505a of Myanmar’s Penal Code, which make it a crime to publish or circulate comments that “cause fear” or spread “false news,” CNN reports.
Fenster, the managing editor of the online magazine Frontier Myanmar, is still facing additional terrorism and treason charges under which he could receive up to life in prison.
Fenster's harsh penalty is the ruling military’s latest rebuff of calls from around the world for a peaceful end to Myanmar’s political crisis.