Myanmar court jails Japanese journalist for 10 years for reporting on protests

Toru Kubota is the fifth foreign journalist detained after last year’s military coup

Toru Kubota, a Japanese journalist detained in Myanmar while covering a protest (AP)

A court in Myanmar has sentenced a Japanese documentary filmmaker to 10 years in jail for violating the country’s sedition and communications laws.

Toru Kubota, 26, a freelance journalist, was arrested in July and charged with spreading false information in his coverage of protests against Myanmar’s military coup.

Tetsuo Kitada, deputy chief of mission of the Japanese Embassy, said in a statement that Mr Kubota was sentenced on Wednesday to seven years for violating the electronic transactions law and three years for incitement, which would be served concurrently, reported the Associated Press.