Amnesty to more than 3,000 detainees in Myanmar

Myanmar’s military administration announced that more than 3,000 detainees will be released as part of the amnesty granted due to the traditional New Year holiday.

MRTV television announced that the Myanmar State Administrative Council (SAC), the governing body of the military regime, pardoned 3,113 prisoners, 98 of whom were foreigners, due to the traditional New Year holiday, and that these people would be released. . The official at the Insein prison in the city of Yangon said the number and names of those to be released from the country’s largest prison are still unknown.

Tun Kyi, a member of the Association of Former Political Prisoners, said they viewed such practices as an attempt to score “political points”, easing international pressure and demonstrating the legitimacy of the armed forces.

The Myanmar military seized power on February 1, 2021, following allegations of fraud in the 2020 general election and political tension in the country. The army detained many ruling party officials and leaders, especially the country’s former de facto leader and foreign minister, Aung San Suu Kyi, and declared a state of emergency for a year.

More than 1,800 people have lost their lives as a result of the Myanmar army’s armed intervention against anti-coup protesters and rebel groups. Since the coup, approximately 13,000 people have been detained, more than 10,000 people remain in detention.

According to the Organization for Aid to Political Prisoners, more than 1,900 people have died in the country since the coup and more than 10,000 people have been detained. Myanmar’s military courts have handed down death sentences for 114 political prisoners, including 2 children. (AA)