Vicky Bowman, a former British ambassador to Burma, and her husband, Htin Lin, a well-known Burmese artist and activist, were sentenced on Friday to a year in prison for violating the country’s immigration laws. They were detained by the Burmese authorities last week in Rangoon, the largest city in Burma,
In a case that has all the potential of being political, given that authorities rarely prosecute foreigners for crimes related to Burma’s immigration laws, according to the BBC. The military authorities that govern the country have not yet commented on the ruling on non-registration of the change of residence.
Amnesty International’s deputy regional campaign director, Ming Yu Hah, described the news of Bowman and Hein Lin’s convictions as deeply disturbing. “Burma’s military has a notorious record of arresting and imprisoning people on political or trumped up charges,” he said.
Bowman was a diplomat in Burma in the 1990s and returned as ambassador from 2002 to 2006. She currently directs the Center for Responsible Business for Burma (MCRB) based in Rangoon. The organization was “shocked” by the verdict.
In a statement, he explained that Bowman “has devoted many years of his life to promoting Burma’s social and economic development.” “We hope it will be possible to reunite her with her family in the UK as soon as possible.”
Hattin Lin, meanwhile, is an important artist and former political prisoner. He was a member of the Student Democratic Front of Burma, an armed resistance group formed after the student-led popular uprisings against the military junta in 1988.
The couple’s arrest came as the UK announced new sanctions against military-linked companies and says it will “interfere” in the genocide case that Gambia against Burma opened to the International Court of Justice in 2019.
In addition, the arrest and conviction of the couple, according to the Associated Press, also took place a few days after the UN Special Envoy for Burma, Nolen Heyzer, met the head of the Burmese military junta, General Min Aung Hlaing. Heizer demanded the release of all political prisoners.
In recent weeks, the army that has ruled the country since 2021 after a coup has intensified its crackdown on the opposition, including journalists and foreign nationals. In July, the military junta executed at least four members of the opposition, including former NLD MP Phew Zia Tho and activist Ko Jimmy.
The military regime in Burma has been accused of widespread human rights violations and the UK has taken a hard line against the military regime, expelling the current British ambassador from the country.
It is thus possible that the junta – which seized power last year after toppling the democratically elected government of Aung Song Suu Kyi – feared Bauman’s work and prestige. Because it can collect classified information or detailed information about the opaque business of shady companies associated with the military.
Bowman also criticized some of the measures taken by the military council that affected the economy. He has spoken at several seminars on Burma since the coup, although he was always careful to avoid any open criticism of the military government. Her husband may also have been a factor in condemning her critical role in relation to the military executive.
