Friday, March 29, 2024
HomeLead StoryDutchman who unplugged Buddhist sermon released from jail, deported

Dutchman who unplugged Buddhist sermon released from jail, deported

Dutch tourist Klaas Haytema, 30, was released from Mandalay Prison on Tuesday and immediately deported via Thailand after completing his three-month sentence. He was convicted in early October for unplugging a loudspeaker outside his hotel that was blasting a Buddhist sermon.

While on trial in late September, he told the court he did not know the loudspeaker was playing a religious sermon and had been struggling to sleep because of the noise. He was later found guilty of disrupting a religious assembly under Section 296 of the Burmese Penal Code.

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He was also fined K100,000 (US$70) to avoid an additional six-month sentence for violating the terms of his visa.
Following his sentencing, Haytema’s sister Geartsje told the Myanmar Times: “Three months, that means we could have him home at the end of December. That would just be the best Christmas present we could wish for.”

Merry Christmas, Haytema family!

This article was republished courtesy of Coconuts Yangon.

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