14-year-old Mai Cho Min Htwe was convicted without a trial on 30th October for allegedly being involved with the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA). The TNLA is an ethnic armed group based in northern Shan State that is engaged in armed conflict with the Burmese Army.
The Burmese Army Light Infantry Division 105 arrested Mai Cho Min Htwe on 5th October after allegedly finding a photograph of him in a TNLA uniform while searching the boy's mobile phone during a traffic stop.
According to Mai Cho Min Htwe's lawyer, military officers reportedly interrogated Mai Cho Min Htwe overnight, beat him, and deprived him of sleep, food, and water. This amounts to torture. He was charged under Article 17(1) of the Unlawful Associations Act. On 30th October, he was sentenced to two years in prison.
Aung San Suu Kyi does not control the military but she does have the power to release Mai Cho Min Htwe and does have the parliamentary majority needed to repeal the Unlawful Associations Act.