400 unnamed prisoners freed in Myanmar News
400 unnamed prisoners freed in Myanmar

[JURIST] Myanmar's military government announced Thursday that it had released 400 prisoners but refused to name them. The majority of those released are believed to be political prisoners, many of whom are tied to the National League of Democracy party of Aung San Suu Kyi [official website; Wikipedia profile]. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan called for the lifting of all remaining restraints on NLD activity in a statement. The decision to release the prisoners comes only weeks before the Association of South East Asian Nations [official website] convenes in Laos to discuss whether to allow Myanmar to take the rotating presidency of the organization, a possibility that has disturbed both ASEAN nations and the West. AFP has more.