FMT:
Myanmar cuts ex-leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s sentence, frees former president
Aung San Suu Kyi’s 27-year sentence was reduced by one-sixth, while former president Win Myint was freed under specified conditions
It is unclear whether Aung San Suu Kyi (left) will be allowed to serve the remainder of her sentence under house arrest or what conditions apply to Win Myint’s pardon.
YANGON: Myanmar has reduced the sentence of imprisoned ex-leader Aung San Suu Kyi, her lawyer told Reuters on Friday, as part of an amnesty by a new president who ousted her government in a coup five years ago.
Suu Kyi, 80, was serving a 27-year sentence for a litany of offences her allies said were politically motivated to keep her at bay, ranging from incitement and corruption to election fraud and violating a state secrets law.
The sentence has been cut by one-sixth, but it remains unclear whether the Nobel Peace Prize winner will be allowed to serve the rest of her sentence under house arrest, the lawyer said.
The wildly popular Suu Kyi, who had dismissed the charges against her as “absurd”, has not been seen in public since the end of her marathon trials, and her whereabouts have been unknown.
Earlier, state media reported that President Min Aung Hlaing approved an amnesty for 4,335 prisoners, the third such move in the past six months. Amnesties typically take place in Myanmar each year to mark Independence Day in January and New Year in April.
Among the prisoners freed was Win Myint, who served as president from 2018 until the 2021 military coup.
Win Myint, an ally of Suu Kyi, was “granted a pardon and the reduction of his remaining sentences under specified conditions”, state broadcaster MRTV said.
A spokesperson for the military-backed government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The 2021 coup against Win Myint and Suu Kyi’s democratically elected government was led by Min Aung Hlaing. It plunged the Southeast Asian country into a nationwide civil war that continues to rage.
Min Aung Hlaing was elected president on April 3 following polls in December and January during which the opposition was stifled and largely absent.
Critics and Western governments dismissed the vote as a sham designed to entrench military rule behind a democratic facade.
Suu Kyi, 80, was serving a 27-year sentence for a litany of offences her allies said were politically motivated to keep her at bay, ranging from incitement and corruption to election fraud and violating a state secrets law.
The sentence has been cut by one-sixth, but it remains unclear whether the Nobel Peace Prize winner will be allowed to serve the rest of her sentence under house arrest, the lawyer said.
The wildly popular Suu Kyi, who had dismissed the charges against her as “absurd”, has not been seen in public since the end of her marathon trials, and her whereabouts have been unknown.
Earlier, state media reported that President Min Aung Hlaing approved an amnesty for 4,335 prisoners, the third such move in the past six months. Amnesties typically take place in Myanmar each year to mark Independence Day in January and New Year in April.
Among the prisoners freed was Win Myint, who served as president from 2018 until the 2021 military coup.
Win Myint, an ally of Suu Kyi, was “granted a pardon and the reduction of his remaining sentences under specified conditions”, state broadcaster MRTV said.
A spokesperson for the military-backed government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The 2021 coup against Win Myint and Suu Kyi’s democratically elected government was led by Min Aung Hlaing. It plunged the Southeast Asian country into a nationwide civil war that continues to rage.
Min Aung Hlaing was elected president on April 3 following polls in December and January during which the opposition was stifled and largely absent.
Critics and Western governments dismissed the vote as a sham designed to entrench military rule behind a democratic facade.
The Myanmar Regime's jailing of The Lady , widely considered internationally as artificially concocted and unjust , has been a key obstacle to Myammar normalising relations with many countries.
ReplyDeleteMy guess is Myanmar, facing multiple crises, badly needs to normalise its international relations, including with the West.
This removes one of the key obstacles, but there are many others.