Myanmar junta pardons thousands ahead of disputed election
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Protesters holding up a portrait of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi during a demonstration outside the UN office in Bangkok on Feb 1, 2024.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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YANGON - Myanmar’s junta will pardon or drop charges against 8,665 people, state media reported on Nov 27, allowing them to vote in an upcoming election that Western countries and human rights groups have dismissed as a sham.
The order includes the reduction of sentences for 3,085 people convicted under section 505A of the Penal Code, which criminalises comments that could cause fear or spread fake news.
Charges against another 5,580 people who are still at large have also been dropped.
It was not immediately clear how many of those covered are political detainees, or when the releases would occur.
Speaking on Nov 26 before the amnesty was formally announced, Myanmar military government spokesman Zaw Min Tun said the measures were designed to help all eligible voters cast their ballots “freely and fairly” in the upcoming polls.
Myanmar has been in turmoil since a 2021 military coup
According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, a human rights group, more than 30,000 people have been detained on political charges since the coup.
The military government is set to hold the election over several phases in December and January. But with many opposition parties either banned from taking part or boycotting it, it has been dismissed by some Western countries and human rights groups as a sham designed to consolidate military rule.
Earlier this week, the Trump administration announced that it will end temporary legal status for Myanmar citizens in the US, claiming they can now safely return to the war-torn country, citing the junta’s planned election as a sign of improving conditions.
Mr Zaw Min Tun said on Nov 26 that the US announcement was a positive sign and that citizens abroad were welcome to return to take part in the vote. REUTERS
