Photo: EPA-EFE/NYEIN CHAN NAING
Mizzima
36 foreigners were amongst the 3,303 prisoners pardoned by the junta for the first day of the Myanmar New Year on 17 April 2024.
The 28 prisoners, 13 from Indonesia, 15 from Sri Lanka and eight from other unspecified countries were released and deported.
The decision to release the foreign prisoners was made to foster positive international relations, emphasize humanitarian values and commemorate Myanmar’s New year, according to a junta announcement on the MRTV television channel.
The prisoners were released under Section 401(1) of the Criminal Code, authorised by Lt. Gen. Aung Lin Dwe, Secretary of the Military Council. If the released prisoners commit any further crimes they will again have to serve their original sentence for which they were pardoned.
It is unclear how many political prisoners were released, but according to the Political Prisoners Network Myanmar very few political prisoners were released.
Since the coup on 1 February, 2021, the junta has arrested a total of 26,524 individuals. Presently, 20,351 individuals remain in detention, with 8,940 of them serving sentences, according to figures from the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP).
