Junta’s amnesty falls short of pledge, rights group says

By DMG 27 Oct 2021

DMG Newsroom
27 October 2021, Sittwe 

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) said Tuesday that only 4,065 political prisoners in Myanmar had been released as of October 25, despite the junta’s pledge earlier this month to release 5,636 people detained during anti-coup protests nationwide since its February putsch. 

Of the prisoners released in the recent amnesty, only 480 have been confirmed by name, according to the AAPP, which said it was working to verify individual data to get the exact number and names of those released to date. 

The military-led State Administration Council (SAC) announced on October 18 that more than 5,600 people arrested or rendered fugitives of the law for their anti-regime activities would be granted amnesty. 

The rights advocacy group pointed out that the military council has not released the names of those detained over the course of its crackdown on the opposition, nor has it provided a list of those purportedly released in its October 18 amnesty. 

In its statement, AAPP called on the military to make known to the public the details of those released or otherwise amnestied. 

At least 1,213 people have been killed and 9,223 arrested in Myanmar security forces’ crackdowns on anti-regime opposition since the February 1 coup, according to an October 26 press release from the AAPP. 

The AAPP has been documenting the number of arrests and deaths at the hands of Myanmar security forces since the February 1 coup. 

On October 24, the junta-controlled Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that it questioned the death toll reported by AAPP, claiming the data was compiled on the basis of “unreliable sources.”