Myanmar court extends detention for 2 Reuters reporters

BANGKOK – A court in Myanmar has extended the detention of two Reuters journalists and set their trial date for Jan. 14 on charges of violating state secrets.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo were arrested Dec. 12 for acquiring "important secret papers" from two policemen. The police officers had worked in Rakhine state, where abuses widely blamed on the military have driven more than 630,000 Rohingya Muslims to flee into neighboring Bangladesh. The charges are punishable by up to 14 years in prison.

Wa Lone says "we are just working as journalists. ... We never violate journalism ethics," as he and his colleague were led out of a police van into the courtroom.

Their families wept as they got a chance to see them for the first time since their arrests.