An Indonesian influencer has been sentenced to seven years in prison for meeting with rebels in junta-ruled Myanmar, a foreign ministry official in Jakarta said.
Myanmar has been consumed by a many-sided civil war since the military snatched power in a 2021 coup, with millions of people displaced, according to United Nations figures.
The Indonesian social media influencer, identified by officials as a 33-year-old with the initials AP, was arrested by Myanmar authorities in December.
“After going through the court process, AP was sentenced to seven years in prison,” said Judha Nugraha, director for citizen protection at the Indonesian foreign ministry.
The Indonesian national was accused of “entering Myanmar illegally and then meeting with an armed group categorised as a banned organisation”, Judha said on Wednesday.
A Myanmar court charged him with violating laws on terrorism, immigration and unlawful association, as the junta battles rebels in a grinding war.
The ministry official said Jakarta was “facilitating a request for clemency from the family”.
On a social media account reported by local media to belong to the jailed influencer, posts show a man jaunting through conflict zones – including war-torn Ukraine and Afghanistan – as well as enjoying glitzy stays in Bali and Paris. — AFP
