Mother sues son for calling her prostitute

Yangon, March 21: A Myanmar woman is suing her own son for calling her a “prostitute” on Facebook, the latest case under a controversial law that critics say is increasingly stifling free speech.

Police arrested 21-year-old Wana Oo on Tuesday after his mother Tin Tin Hla, from southern Myanmar, brought a case against him over comments he made about her relationship with a new boyfriend.

“She sued her son for abusing her on Facebook concerning her complicated relationship,” local police officer Aung Lwin said. “The police have now arrested her son and he confessed to what he did on Facebook. We will process the case according to the law.”

Wana Oo was charged under a broadly-worded law that forbids defaming people on any telecommunications network and can carry up to three-years in jail.

Images of posts by the police showed several pictures of Tin Tin Hla posted on Wana Oo’s Facebook page with insulting comments underneath.

Defamation prosecutions have soared since Aung San Suu Kyi’s government took power in March 2016, including for people who have made online criticisms about the democracy leader. Hopes had been high her NLD party, many of whom spent decades in jail for speaking their minds under Myanmar’s former junta, would usher in a new era of free speech.