6,000 prisoners were released from prison by the state’s military government on Sat
Families celebrate the release of political prisoners outside the prison on Saturday. Pic/PTI
Myanmar’s military government has released more than 6,000 prisoners and has reduced other inmates’ sentences as part of a mass amnesty marking the 77th anniversary of independence from Britain on Saturday. They included just a small proportion of hundreds of political detainees jailed for opposing army rule since the military seized power in February 2021 from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.
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State-run television reported that Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, the head of the military government, granted amnesties covering 5,864 prisoners from Myanmar, as well as 180 foreigners who will be deported. Mass prisoner releases are common on holidays and other significant occasions in Myanmar.
A small proportion of political detainees who were jailed for opposing the military coup in 2021, were also released. Pic/PTI
In a separate report, it said Min Aung Hlaing had commuted the life sentences of 144 prisoners to 15 years’ imprisonment. The report also said that all other prisoners will have their sentences reduced by one sixth, except those convicted under the Explosive Substances Act, the Unlawful Associations Act, the Arms Act and the Counterterrorism Law, all laws which are often used against opponents of military rule.
Major General Zaw Min Tun, the spokesperson for the military government, said that those being released included about 600 prisoners who were prosecuted under Section 505(A) of Myanmar’s penal code, which makes it a crime to spread comments that create public unrest or fear or spread false news.
He said Khet Aung, a former chief minister of the southern Kachin state, was among those freed. There was no sign that the prisoner release would include Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been held virtually incommunicado by the military since its seizure of power.
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