Myanmar Repeals Emergency Law Used for Decades to Silence Activists

Myanmar has abolished one of the most authoritarian laws used by previous military regimes to silence political opponents, a lawmaker said on Tuesday. The Emergency Provisions Act gave authorities broad powers to hold people without charge and allowed courts to convict on scanty evidence. Military members of parliament, who fill 25 percent of seats under Myanmar's military-drafted constitution, had opposed repealing it on the grounds it was vital to national security. The law...

© La Voix de l'Amérique - mardi 4 octobre 2016