Myanmar grants pardons to nearly 4,000 prisoners, including former president

Myanmar’s President Min Aung Hlaing has issued an amnesty order, granting pardons to thousands of prisoners and reducing the sentences of others. The move comes as part of his first official acts since taking office as president earlier this month.

According to a statement from the presidency, former president Win Myint has been pardoned of his convictions, while Aung San Suu Kyi, who is serving a 27-year sentence on charges her allies describe as politically motivated, has had her sentence reduced by one-sixth. The reduction was confirmed by her lawyer.

The amnesty order includes the commutation of all death sentences to life imprisonment, reductions in term lengths for those serving life sentences, and a one-sixth reduction in term lengths for other prisoners. It also applies to 179 foreign nationals who will be deported upon release.

Min Aung Hlaing approved an amnesty for 4,335 prisoners, as reported by state television MRTV. The move is seen as part of the country’s tradition of granting amnesties on Independence Day in January and New Year in April.

Families of those detained have gathered outside Yangon’s Insein prison, hoping their relatives will be among those released. However, human rights groups have noted that previous pardons have not always included political prisoners, with fewer than 14 percent of those released in successive amnesties since the coup being classified as political prisoners.

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners has reported over 30,000 people detained on political charges since the 2021 coup. Suu Kyi’s whereabouts remain unknown, and her health is reportedly declining.

Source: Al Jazeera