Suu Kyi’s jail term cut; Myanmar former prez among 4,300 freed

Prisoner Amnesty

FPJ News Service

Mumbai

Myanmar’s military-led government has reduced the prison sentence of former leader Aung San Suu Kyi by one-sixth as part of a mass amnesty announced by President Min Aung Hlaing, her lawyer said on Friday.

Suu Kyi, 80, has been serving a 27-year sentence on charges including incitement, corruption, election fraud and violating a state secrets law. Her allies say the charges are politically motivated. The reduction cuts about four-and-a-half years from her term, leaving roughly 22-and-a-half years remaining, Reuters and Al Jazeera report.

It remains unclear if the Nobel Peace Prize winner will serve the rest of her sentence under house arrest. She has not been seen in public since her trials ended, and her whereabouts remain unknown. The amnesty also led to the release of former president Win Myint, detained since the 2021 military coup. State broadcaster MRTV said he was “granted a pardon and the reduction of his remaining sentences under specified conditions”.

Min Aung Hlaing okayed an amnesty for 4,335 prisoners, including 179 foreign nationals who will be deported. 

A communique said, “Those serving death sentences shall have their sentences commuted to life imprisonment.” Amnes­ties typically coin­cide with Independence Day in January and New Year in April.

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners says more than 30,000 people have been detained since the coup.