Ex-minister Ye Htut held

A FORMER high-profile Myanmar army officer, who had served as information minister and presidential spokesperson in a previous military-backed government, has been arrested and charged with spreading false or inflammatory news, a statement from the current military government said.

In a statement sent to journalists, the military’s information office said 64-year-old Ye Htut (pic), a retired lieutenant-colonel, was arrested for violating Section 505(A) of the penal code, a provision called “incitement”, for writing and spreading false news on Facebook.