A student activist who was being detained for allegedly defaming the military and “inciting unrest” has been granted bail following a recent attack by another inmate.
The defendant, Aung Htet, was a member of the Taungoo Student Union, and performed in the Kaytu Oh-Way Thangyat Group. He was arrested in August after a lieutenant colonel filed a lawsuit against him and another student, Victor, for a Thangyat song that the group performed that advocated for the amendment of the military-drafted constitution. Although Victor still remains at large, Aung Htet has been held at the Taungoo Township Court ever since the charges were brought forward.
Last week however, he was attacked by another inmate, and suffered “several injuries on his head,” reports Radio Free Asia.
Aung Htet’s lawyer, Robert San Aung, also claims that the prison guards facilitated the attack by placing rocks in the shared jail cell, which another inmate then used to beat up his client.
After obtaining a doctor’s note confirming the extent of his injuries, Aung Htet went to a scheduled court hearing on Tuesday where he filed an appeal for bail.
“The judge checked his wound and accepted his doctor’s recommendation to grant him bail,” said Robert San Aung, as quoted by RFA.
Both Victor and Aung Htet are still facing charges under Section 505(b) of the Penal Code, which typically does not allow for bail. If convicted, the defendants face a maximum prison sentence of up to two years and/or a monetary fine.
