Myanmar military junta announces amnesty for 10,000 prisoners News
Phyo WP, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Myanmar military junta announces amnesty for 10,000 prisoners

Myanmar state media announced Monday that the acting president of the ruling military junta has granted amnesty to more than 10,000 prisoners to commemorate a national holiday. The announcement reads that the amnesties were issued for the “peace of mind of the public” and to celebrate the Full Moon Day of Tabung, a major religious holiday in Myanmar marking the final month of the Burmese lunar calendar. It also coincides this year with the annual Peasants’ Day.

According to the state broadcaster, Myanmar Radio and Television, 10,162 prisoners have been granted amnesty on the condition that if those released re-offend, they will be required to not only serve the new sentence, but also serve the remaining portion of the relieved sentence. A total of 7,337 of those prisoners were sentenced under the Myanmar Counter Terrorism Law sections 50(J), “terrorist bombing,” and section 52(A), “organizing or participating within” a terrorist group.

Additionally, the state broadcaster announced the closure of cases for 12,487 individuals accused of offenses under the same laws. In effect, this clears legal proceedings against them.

According to the Associated Press, about a dozen buses carrying prisoners were outside the gate of Myanmar’s largest prison, the Insein facility outside Yangon. Speaking to the Associated Press, freed prisoner Tinzar Aung stated, “I am very happy. I pray that all those who are still in prison will be released.”

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners keeps statistics on those detained in Myanmar since the 2021 coup. Last Friday, they reported that 22,819 people remain in detention due to their activities during and since the “Spring Revolution,” the initial protest wave against the coup in early 2021. It is unclear how many of those claimed to have been released by the government are people detained due to their participation in political activity since the 2021 coup.

International human rights organizations including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have decried the junta’s widespread repression. Myanmar is currently under investigation by the International Court of Justice for accusations of genocide against the Rohingya Muslim minority in the country.

There is no indication that former leader Aung San Suu Kyi is among those granted amnesty.

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