Theresa May has called for the immediate release of two Reuters journalists jailed for carrying police documents, saying the verdict undermines press freedom.

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, were jailed for seven years after being found guilty of breaking state secrets laws while investigating the massacre of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar.

Mrs May's spokesman criticised the verdict, saying she was "extremely disappointed" by it, and the sentencing.

Image: Wa Lone leaves court after his verdict was announced

The spokesman said: "As our ambassador to Burma, who attended the hearing, has said, we are extremely disappointed with this verdict and sentencing.

"We call for the journalists to be released immediately.


"In any democracy, journalists must be free to carry out their jobs without fear or intimidation. This verdict has undermined freedom of the media in Myanmar."

Britain's foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, tweeted that he would raise the case on an upcoming visit to the country.

He said: "Imprisoning journalists who write about inconvenient truths is an unconscionable blow to press freedom, and indeed everyone's freedom.

"Will be raising the extremely serious case of the two Reuters journalists on my forthcoming visit to Burma (Myanmar)."

Image: Kyaw Soe Oo was also jailed for seven years

The journalists were arrested last December while carrying official documents given to them by police.

The pair had been gathering evidence about the execution of 10 men in the village of Inn Din in Myanmar's northern Rakhine State.

The deaths happened during a widespread campaign of violence which started last August and saw more than 700,000 Rohingya flee to neighbouring Bangladesh.

The military crackdown followed attacks on police posts by Rohingya insurgents.

Reuters editor-in-chief Stephen J Alder said: "Today is a sad day for Myanmar, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and the press everywhere.

"This is a major step backward in Myanmar's transition to democracy [and] cannot be squared with the rule of law or freedom of speech."

He added that the verdict "must be corrected by the Myanmar government as a matter of urgency".

Kevin Krolicki, Reuters' regional editor for Asia, said: "What happened today threatens to undermine the rule of law and freedom of press that democracy requires."

Shortly after the announcement broke, the UN in Myanmar issued a call for the pair to be released back to their families and jobs.

Brad Adams, Asia director of Human Rights Watch, also issued a statement, saying: "The outrageous convictions of the Reuters journalists show Myanmar courts' willingness to muzzle those reporting on military atrocities.

Image: Supporters of detained Myanmar journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo march during a rally demanding their release

"These sentences mark a new low for press freedom and further backsliding on rights under Aung San Suu Kyi's government."

Britain's ambassador to Myanmar, Dan Chugg, said the UK was "extremely disappointed by this verdict", while US ambassador to Myanmar Scot Marciel said: "It's deeply troubling for everybody who has struggled so hard here for media freedom."

Video shared online shows supporters attempting to stop the police van carrying the journalists from leaving the court.

Passionate scenes outside court as supporters try to stop police van from leaving. Dignified as ever, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo smile and give a big thumbs up.



"Truth is on our side," Wa Lone has said. #FreeWaLoneKyawSoeOo pic.twitter.com/NAYSv0ciUE — Oliver Slow (@oslow99) September 3, 2018

According to Reuters, on 2 September 2017, Buddhist villagers and government troops in Inn Din killed the men who had been sheltering by a nearby beach after their houses had been burned.

Reporters found at least two of the men had been hacked to death, and the rest had been shot and then buried in a shallow grave.

On 12 December 2017, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo had been invited to dinner by police officers who handed them documents about the massacre.

Image: The Reuters journalists were tried at Insein court

They were arrested when they left the restaurant and charged with "possessing important and secret government documents related to Rakhine state and security forces".

Police claimed the information was illegally obtained with the intention of sharing it with foreign media.

Both men denied the charges, with lawyers claiming they had been set up as punishment for exposing the massacre.

"The truth is on our side. Whatever the situation is, we will not be shaken. They cannot make us weak," said Wa Lone ahead of the verdict.

Image: Relatives of detained Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo pictured as they waited for the verdict

During the trial, the court heard from one police officer who said he was ordered to plant evidence against them.

The government maintains they were detained for breaking the official secrets act.

After the verdict was announced, family members pledged to continue to fight for the men to be freed.

In January, Myanmar's military admitted for the first time that its troops had been involved in the unlawful killing of 10 men in Inn Din.

Image: Almost a million Rohingya refugees are in Bangladeshi camps after fleeing Myanmar

However, it claimed the villagers and soldiers carried out revenge attacks against what it called "Bengali terrorists".

The army said seven soldiers have since been sentenced to 10 years in prison with hard labour for their role in the killings.

The verdict comes a week after a UN report said military leaders must face genocide charges for their role in the violence.

Myanmar has rejected the findings, saying the international community was making "false allegations".