The junta in Myanmar announces mass amnesty for about 3,000 prisoners

Myanmar’s military junta has announced the release of more than 3,000 prisoners, including nearly 100 foreigners, as part of a new mass amnesty. The occasion is the traditional New Year’s party «Thingyan» in former Burma. The generals announced the releases on a pro-military Telegram channel on Monday. It is not known whether political prisoners will also be released. A senior general said the amnesty was “to bring joy to people and address humanitarian concerns”.

Many relatives were waiting in front of the famous Insein prison in the largest city of Yangon (formerly: Rangoon). “About 50 prisoners have come out so far,” a relative of several political prisoners said at 12:00 (local time) from the German news agency. He therefore hoped for the release of his daughter, who had been arrested for protesting against the junta.

Since the military coup of February 1, 2021 and the deposition of de facto Prime Minister Aung San Suu Kyi, the junta has ruled with an iron fist. Arbitrary arrests are common. Suu Kyi is in prison and has been sentenced to a total of more than 30 years in prison for alleged offenses. Just last week, a military airstrike on a village in the Sagaing region caused horror around the world: according to eyewitnesses, more than 170 people were killed, many of them children.

The generals had already released some 5,700 prisoners on the occasion of the national holiday in mid-November. They included prominent foreigners such as Australian economics professor and former adviser to Suu Kyi, Sean Turnell, and former British ambassador to the country, Vicky Bowman. In January, the junta also ordered a mass amnesty for 7,000 prisoners to mark the 75th anniversary of independence from the former British colonial power.

The army has detained more than 21,300 people since the coup, and about 17,400 are still detained, according to the prisoner relief organization AAPP. At least 3,200 people were killed by the junta. (oee/sda/dpa)