CNN
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Myanmar’s military junta will release 7,012 prisoners under an amnesty to mark the country’s independence day, state broadcaster MRTV reported Wednesday.
The Southeast Asian country has faced international isolation and Western-led sanctions since the military seized power from a democratically elected government led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi almost two years ago. .
In a speech marking Myanmar’s 75th anniversary of independence, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing said, “Amid all the pressures, criticisms and attacks, the international and regional countries that have actively cooperated with us, I would like to thank the organization and the individual.” Day.
“We are working closely with neighboring countries such as China, India, Thailand, Laos and Bangladesh. In a speech at a parade in , he said it was complete with fly-passes by flag-waving civil servants, marching soldiers, tanks and military jets.
Myanmar has been in turmoil since the military seized power from Suu Kyi’s government on February 1, 2021. Since then, the military has detained Suu Kyi and other officials, responded with brutal force to pro-democracy protests and opposition, and displaced hundreds of thousands of people.
Although street protests are now rare after a bloody crackdown, the military has been involved in nearly daily clashes with ethnic minority forces, with members of the so-called People’s Defense Forces fighting for their return. Unrest is spreading across swathes of the country as they take up arms for democracy.
Suu Kyi, meanwhile, was recently convicted of five corruption charges and sentenced to seven more years in prison. The internationally condemned series of trials has been accused of being a cover-up to keep the junta’s greatest threat at bay amid widespread domestic resistance to its rule.
Suu Kyi is being held in solitary confinement in a prison in Nay Pyi Taw, where the military claims she has undergone due process by an independent court.
Authorities usually release some prisoners to mark the day Myanmar declared its independence from British rule.
MRTV said the latest amnesty will not include those convicted of murder or rape or imprisoned on charges related to explosives, illegal associations, weapons, drugs, natural disaster management and corruption. said.
It was not immediately clear whether political detainees would be released.
The United States, the European Union, and countries such as the United Kingdom and Canada have imposed sanctions on Myanmar’s military and individuals believed to have contributed to the regime’s rise to power.
In further condemnation, the UN Security Council last month adopted a resolution on Myanmar for the first time in 74 years, calling for an end to the violence and for the military government to release all political detainees.
Referring to international pressure, Min Aung Hlaing accused what he said was “disturbance from countries and organizations that want to intervene in Myanmar’s internal affairs.”
Still, the military government maintains some international support. The UN Security Council remains divided over how to deal with the Myanmar crisis, with China and Russia claiming they oppose strong action. abstained from voting.
Thailand last month took steps to discuss the crisis, including a rare international attendance by ministers of the military junta, despite the absence of several key members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, who have voiced their criticism of the military junta. hosted regional meetings.
ASEAN is leading diplomatic peace efforts, and Myanmar’s generals have been expelled from high-profile rallies in the bloc for failing to keep promises to start talks with opponents linked to Suu Kyi’s ousted government. Locked out.
