Myanmar jails Japanese filmmaker for sedition

FILE PHOTO: A portrait photo of Japanese documentary filmmaker Toru Kubota, who has been detained in Myanmar after filming a protest that took place on July 30, 2022, is displayed during a news conference by his friends including a radio personality Nikki Tsukamoto Kininmonth to call for his release at Japan National Press Club in Tokyo, Japan August 3, 2022. REUTERS/Issei Kato

TOKYO (Reuters) - A court in military-ruled Myanmar has sentenced a Japanese documentary filmmaker to 10 years in prison for violating sedition and communications laws, a Japanese foreign ministry official said on Thursday.

Toru Kubota, 26, was arrested in July at a protest in Myanmar's main city of Yangon. At the time, it was reported he faced charges of breaking an immigration law and encouraging dissent against the ruling military.