Myanmar’s ruling military government announced the release of 5,864 prisoners, including 180 foreigners, under an amnesty, state media reported on Saturday.
The annual pardon will mark the country’s 77th Independence Day. Myanmar regularly announces mass prisoner release orders on Independence Day.
What else do we know about the release order?
Military government spokesman Major General Zaw Min Tun said in an audio note to reporters that those released included about 600 prisoners who were prosecuted under Section 505(a) of Myanmar’s penal code.
This article criminalizes spreading comments that cause public unrest or fear, as well as spreading false news.
Zaw Min Tun said Khet Aung, the former chief minister of southern Kachin state, who was arrested soon after the 2021 army takeover, was among those released. Khet Aung was sentenced to 12 years in prison in April 2022 on corruption charges.
Zaw Min Tun said most of the foreigners to be released were Thais who were arrested on gambling charges in the eastern Myanmar border town of Tachileik. There are also some Indonesians who were arrested in Myanmar waters.
The release of prisoners began on Saturday but is expected to take a few days to complete.
Friends and families of prisoners had been waiting since morning outside Insein prison in Yangon, the country’s largest city. The prisoners were taken out of the facility by bus.
Where is Aung San Suu Kyi?
It was not clear whether Myanmar’s ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi was among those released.
Suu Kyi and other elderly prisoners were put under house arrest last year, reportedly as a precaution against heat exhaustion.
Suu Kyi, who spent decades under house arrest during the previous military junta and has been a symbol of opposition to decades of military rule, has been in jail since the military seized power in 2021.
The Nobel laureate is serving a combined sentence of 27 years after being convicted on multiple criminal charges.
He has denied all charges against him and rights groups say his sentence is politically motivated.
at least 28,096 people have been arrestedAccording to the Assistance Association of Political Prisoners (AAPP) monitoring group, from 2021.
turmoil in myanmar
The Southeast Asian nation was plunged into violence and chaos after the military seized power from Suu Kyi’s government on February 1, 2021.
Security forces brutally cracked down on the protests and hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced.
According to human rights watchdog Amnesty International, more than 4,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed as the military attempted to impose control.
The military government has promised to hold elections this year, but opposition groups have criticized the move as a sham of political change aimed at appeasing the international community but keeping power in the hands of civilians. There is nothing to move in.
rmt, ess/rm (Reuters, AFP, DW sources)
