US expects 2 Reuters journalists to be acquitted in Myanmar

CAMEROON, Cameroon – U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley says the Trump administration expects to see two Reuters journalists accused by Myanmar’s government of illegally possessing official documents acquitted of all charges next week.

A Myanmar judge postponed the verdict in the case of Kyaw Soe Oo and Wa Lone on Monday, saying it will be announced on Sept. 3.

The two reporters have pleaded not guilty to violating Myanmar’s colonial-era Official Secrets Act. They contend they were framed by police while reporting on Myanmar’s brutal crackdown on Rohingya Muslims.

Haley told the Security Council Tuesday that “a free and responsible press is critical for any democracy.”

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stressed, without mentioning names, that “we must also continue to press for the release of journalists who have been reporting on this human tragedy.”