On April 17th, coinciding with the first day of the Myanmar traditional new year, the Military Council announced an amnesty for 67 prisoners who were released from various prisons in Kachin State.
As a result of the amnesty, 5 women and 28 men from Myitkyina prison, 4 men from Hpakant prison, 27 inmates from Bhamo prison, and 3 from Putao prison were released.
“We have received information that 33 inmates have been released from Myitkyina prison. According to reports, the majority of those who were released had been incarcerated on drug-related charges. However, we currently do not have all the specific details at this time”, a Myitkyina resident told the KNG.
Few if any political prisoners are ever included in this and previous amnesties. The nationwide amnesty granted a pardon to 3015 prisoners and also 98 foreign inmates prisoners, both men and women, who were granted clemency and deported. The Junta imposed the condition for all those released under the amnesty .They were required to pledge that they would serve the remaining sentence ,if they commit any offense again.
According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), as of April 12th, 2023, the total number of people arrested by the Military Council for opposing the coup in 2021 was 21,348. Of those, 17460 individuals are still in custody while 5586 have already been
sentenced to prison. On the other hand, 3866 people have been released, as per the AAPP’s statement.
Similarly, the individuals who were released from Hpakant and Putao prisons were not political prisoners, but instead had been sentenced for drug charges, according to locals.
“The number of political prisoners among the 27 released individuals from Bhamo prison is currently unclear”, a Bhamo resident said.
The Kachin State has five prisons, which are located in Putao, Myitkyina, Bhamo, Mohnyin, and Hpakant. However, the exact number of prisoners who were released under amnesty from Mohnyin prison is still unknown.
It remains unclear if the leaders of the National League for Democracy (NLD) party and political activists who were arrested for opposing the coup were released as part of the amnesty granted by the Military Council..
In addition, among those arrested by the Military Council, 109 individuals have been sentenced to death, while 42 have been sentenced to death in absentia, bringing the total number of people sentenced to death to 151.
