Burmese “Penis Poet” freed but disappointed with “old days” verdict

YANGON: -- A young poet became one of the first political activists sentenced since Nobel laureate Aung Sa Suu Kyi took power in April after a court in Burma sentenced him to six months imprisonment on Tuesday for defaming former President Thien Sein, reported the Irrawaddy on Tuesday.

23-year old Maung Saunghka posted a poem in his Facebook page featuring a tattoo of a president on his penis. He was charged for defaming Thien Sein under Burma’s Telecommunications law.

However he was freed on Tuesday after having spent more than six months in jail since his arrest. But the case highlights the limits of control that Suu Kyi’s government has over the government where the military plays an outsized political role. It also draws attention to the continued use of the Telecommunications law to stifle dissent.

After leaving the court, Maung Saunghka said he was glad to be freed but was disappointed about the verdict. “Even though we have a democratically elected government, the verdict waslike from the old days,” he said.

Burma’s judiciary has, for decades, been an instrument of oppression by the junta against democratic opposition activists jailing them for long terms on show trials.

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/content/164706

-- Thai PBS 2016-05-25

Strange place to have a Tatoo.. ????

A sign of the times in which we all live...using one's penis as a political protest...how are we going to top this?

"It also draws attention to the continued use of the Telecommunications law to stifle dissent."

Hmm, sounds familiar.