Myanmar activists jailed over anti-war protests

A court in Myanmar's restive Kachin state has jailed three activists for defaming the military, their lawyer said yesterday, as campaigners slammed the "chilling warning" the verdict sends to critical voices in the country. Lum Zawng, Nang Pu and Zau Jet had helped organise an anti-war demonstration in April in the state capital Myitkyina to highlight the plight of thousands displaced by fighting between the military and ethnic Kachin insurgents. The youth leaders were sentenced on Friday to six months in prison and fined about $320 each.